My Little Pony: Shattered Dimensions
by Kenny Rutter
Summary: The final entry in the second My Little Pony Crossover Trilogy. The Mane Six and Discord are tasked with figuring out why Equestria and another world have merged, and they recruit the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers to help them.
1. Wonderbolt Training

_THIS STORY IS DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF THUY TRANG, THE ORIGINAL YELLOW RANGER. REST IN PEACE, AND MY THE POWER PROTECT YOU._

WONDERBOLT TRAINING

RAINBOW FALLS – ONCE AGAIN THE TRAINING SITE FOR THE AERIAL TEAM KNOWN as the Wonderbolts. This part of the mountainside, adorned with the rivers flowing from Canterlot, had been the Wonderbolt training ground since the days of Commander Firefly. The area itself got the name thanks to the near-constant rainbows that criss-crossed the area.

Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. She couldn't help how nervous she was. She'd already kicked tail at the Wonderbolt Academy – even though she ended up getting her fellow trainee Lightning Dust kicked out thanks to the latter's rash actions with a tornado – and aced the Wonderbolts Reserve entrance exam, with a little help from her friends, of course. She nearly ended up getting kicked out herself because a veteran Wonderbolt tried to frame her for a crime she didn't commit, and even though she were now an official member of the Wonderbolts, she couldn't help but feel trepidation. After all, the Wonderbolts she was training with were veterans; Rainbow Dash may have defeated physical gods and fought in alien wars and traveled to other worlds, but Spitfire, Soarin, and Fleetfoot were the top three Pegasi on the team.

She used the calmness technique that Twilight had taught her – taking a long, deep breath and slowly letting it out. Twilight had first learned the technique from Cadance, when the Crystal Empire was selected to host the Equestria Games. It had seemed to work for Twilight, and it had even seemed to work for Rarity's little sister Sweetie Belle, but for Rainbow Dash, it wasn't. She'd never been so nervous in her entire life.

Someone put a hoof on her shoulder, startling her.

"Yikes!"

"Whoa, Rainbow. Calm down," Twilight said. "I've never seen you so nervous before."

"Neither have I," Rainbow Dash said. "Geez. It's bad enough I don't know who I'm going to be sparring against, but just knowing that I'm going up against one of the WONDERBOLTS!"

"And why should that bother you?" Applejack asked; all of her friends had accompanied her for this event. "You've done much more than any Wonderbolt."

"I must agree with Applejack on this one," Rarity added. "We all have."

"You guys just don't understand. These are the top fliers in all of Equestria!"

"And you're the toppest of top fliers," Pinkie Pie chirped.

"Pinkie's right," Fluttershy said. "I've never seen anypony better than you in the skies."

Rainbow Dash took another deep breath, finally calming herself down. "You know what, you guys? I think you're right. I'm getting worked up over nothing. What have the Wonderbolts done other than put on air shows and get smacked around by a rampaging dragon? They haven't fought in alien wars or gone to other worlds."

"Uh oh," Twilight whispered to Rarity. "Maybe we shouldn't have said all those things. We were just stroking her ego."

"I can already hear her boasts now," Rarity said.

"I don't know who I'm going to be sparring against," Rainbow Dash said. "But it doesn't matter. Because I know that whoever it is can't beat me! I know that I'm going to win!"

Applejack rolled her eyes. "Here we go again."

Rainbow Dash began to sing, loud enough that everyone in the area could hear her – which was exactly what she wanted.

 _I know the deaI know their sound_

 _I know their feel_

 _Well, I know the end_

 _And all I say is all I ever have to say,_

 _I know the sign_

 _So I am right and I am real,_

 _I know exactly how it feels_

She flew up into the air, projecting her voice as loud as she could, catching the attention of anypony who hadn't noticed her. She wanted them to know what she was saying; wanted them to know that they had no chance of success against her.

 _I will win_

 _I won't stop until I get them_

 _I will win_

"Rainbow, I think you're letting all the confidence go to your head," Rarity said.

"Give me a break, Rare," Rainbow Dash said. "Me? Let my confidence go to my head? You're pulling my leg."

 _I know the thrill_

 _I know their feel_

 _I know their call_

 _Well, I know the time_

 _And all I have to do is all I ever do,_

 _Well I know the game_

 _'Cause I am right and I am real_

 _I know exactly how it feels_

Some ponies had begun cheering; it was no secret that Rainbow Dash tended to project her confidence onto everypony else, making them feel confident themselves.

 _'Cause I...will win_

 _I won't stop until I get them_

 _I will win_

She swooped down to the judges' table and scooped up the megaphone. "You hear me, Wonderbolts? I'm gonna kick your tails today! You don't stand a bucking chance!"

"That's the spirit," Spitfire said. "See, everypony? That's the kind of attitude I like to see."

Rainbow Dash kept singing into the megaphone.

 _'Cause I am right and I am real_

 _I know exactly how it feels_

 _'Cause I...will win_

 _I won't stop until I get them_

 _I will win_

 _I will win_

 _I won't stop until I get them_

 _I will win!_

Twilight smacked a hoof against her face; sometimes she wondered why the even bothered encouraging Rainbow Dash. She always went and did stunts like this, flaunting herself and showing off when she didn't have to. And it usually ended up with Rainbow Dash's confidence taking a massive hit. And when Rainbow Dash's confidence went down, she became…unpredictable. Sometimes she became upset and secluded herself, other times she got angry and at one point she even beat somepony to the point of them needing to spend a month in Ponyville General just to recover.

 _Please don't let her put somepony in the hospital, please don't let her put somepony in the hospital._

"You can put the megaphone down, Rainbow Dash," Spitfire said. "Your sparring partner today will be…Soarin!"

"Soarin?"

"All right!" Soarin cried. "Let's go, Rainbow Dash!"

Rainbow Dash liked Soarin; he was always smiling and so full of energy – he was like a colt in a stallion's body. His energy, like Rainbow Dash's confidence, was almost contagious. Every time she saw him, she just felt like smiling and going for a flight, flying as fast as she could, any activity she could get into.

But fighting against him, even if it were just a sparring match for a training exercise? She wasn't sure if she could.

Soarin hovered in the air. "What're you waiting for, Rainbow Dash?" he asked. "Let's do this thing. Or are you too chicken?"

Something clicked inside of Rainbow Dash. She glared at Soarin. "What did you call me, motherbucker?"

"You heard me."

Rainbow Dash flared her wings and scraped at the ground. "That's it, pal. You're going down!" She flew up at Soarin, who quickly moved out of the way. "Get back here, you!"

"Can't catch me, slowpoke!"

"I'll show you slow!" She sped up, catching up to Soarin in less than a second and slamming into him, sending him tumbling to the ground. He flared his wings, slowing his fall.

Rainbow Dash slammed into him again, knocking him down. "How'd that feel, you son of a mare?" She charged at Soarin.

Soarin rushed to meet her charge. They slammed into each other, their heads pushing against the other, their hooves digging into the ground for traction. Rainbow Dash fluttered her wings; she wanted to bring Soarin down – she wanted to win.

Yet she was still smiling, as was Soarin.

"I think I underestimated you," Soarin said. "Took all your feats for granted, you know."

"Yeah? Well, don't think that means I'm going to go soft on you now," Rainbow Dash said. She pushed forward, throwing Soarin back. "Face it, Soarin – YOU'RE the one who's gone soft."

"Well excuse me for not being a chosen savior of Equestria." He took to the air again.

Rainbow Dash followed. "I'm not done with you yet!"

"Rainbow, back off a little bit!" Twilight called after her. "You might actually hurt Soarin!"

"I don't think she heard you, Twi," Applejack said. "Either that or she just don't care."

Rainbow Dash and Soarin collided in the air. Soarin smacked Rainbow Dash in the face with his front hooves. Rainbow Dash responded by slamming her hoof directly into his muzzle – hard enough to hurt, but not hard enough to shatter bone.

They slammed into the ground, Rainbow Dash standing triumphantly on top of Soarin.

"Oh yeah! Oh yeah! I kicked your flank! Oh yeah! I'm cool! I win! Oh yeah!"

"Okay, okay, get off of me," Soarin said. He pushed Rainbow Dash off of him and stood up, his four legs shaking with adrenaline. "Like I said, I underestimated you. Don't know why – probably because you're just a reserve. But you sure do know how to fight."

"What did you expect? I've fought wars, taken down gods, been to other worlds – did you really think I'd be a pushover?"

The two Pegasi scraped at the ground again; they were getting ready to charge.

Spitfire stepped in between them and blew her whistle. "Okay, ponies, I think that's enough. You both did good. Take a breather."

"Good. That means I can finish my pie," Soarin said as he trotted over to the Wonderbolts' waiting area.

Rainbow Dash trotted over to her friends. "Heh. He stood no chance."

"You might want to be careful about being too overconfident, Rainbow Dash," Twilight said. "That could get you into some serious trouble one day."

Rainbow Dash waved a dismissive hoof at the lavender alicorn. "Give me a break, Twilight. What trouble could a little confidence get me into?"

Twilight simply raised an eyebrow.


	2. Kronos

KRONOS

LORD ZEDD WAS FURIOUS; YET ANOTHER MONSTER HAD FALLEN AT THE HANDS of the Power Rangers. It was ironic – the very thing that he had banished Rita for was now happening to him. Loss after loss, minion after minion destroyed, his Putty Patrol dwindling day after day. How had it come to this? How had he fallen so far? He was Lord Zedd, Emperor of All. His powers and reputation were known throughout the universe! Granted he was nowhere near as powerful as his master, Dark Specter, but still….

Goldar knew better than to even be in the same room with Lord Zedd when he got like this. He had been on the receiving end of one of Zedd's more violent outbursts; it was something he would rather not repeat.

One poor Putty Patroller wasn't so fortunate; Zedd zapped it with his staff, vaporizing it.

"Another day, another monster, another failure from all of you!" he screamed.

Goldar was powerful, there was no doubt, but even he would never dare to tell Zedd that every failure was in fact on him. It was different with Rita; she was nowhere near as powerful as Zedd, and so she couldn't do as much to him. Zedd could kill Goldar, yet at the same time, he would leave Goldar alive, but broken, just so Zedd could relish in Goldar's suffering.

Zedd slowly started to calm down. "There must be some way I can eliminate those meddlesome Rangers once and for all. But what? Everything I do, they find a way to counter – I send out a new, powerful monster, and they form the Megazord to destroy it. I use Serpentera, it runs out of power before it can even do anything. I send in the Putties, they get shattered like glass. And now they have that new White Ranger." He clenched a metallic fist. "What am I to do?"

"I regret to say that I do not have an answer, My Lord," Goldar said.

"I wasn't talking to you, you nit!" Zedd bellowed. He scratched his exposed brain, a quirk of his when he was thinking deeply about something. "There must be some way…."

#########################

The God of Dimensions had just finished fixing another dimensional rift. They had been happening quite frequently over the past year and a half, if not longer. It was beginning to tire Kronos out. It would be different if these rifts were his doing – he was capable of such a thing, after all – but when they happen without his knowledge or consent, he tended to get frustrated.

It was a well-known fact among cosmic beings such as Kronos that rifts always opened up between dimensions – some natural, some artificial. What really baffled him about these rifts, though, was that, no matter what, they all went to the same world – the magical land of Equestria.

The first rift had occurred thanks to an experiment by the Shinra Corporation from the world Gaia. The second one was also artificial, thanks to the Decepticons. As was the third one, though that time it was partly an accident. But recently, the rifts had become less artificial and more natural – except for one, which was created thanks to Equestrian magic. The most recent one was hidden in a cave in Feudal Japan, on the planet Earth.

It couldn't have been a coincidence that Equestria had always been the destination. Something had drawn everyone there. Not that Kronos could blame them – he had been to Equestria before, over a thousand years ago. It was a beautiful land, innocent and peaceful, and the benevolent rule of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had just started, thanks to the unicorn scholar Starswirl the Bearded. There were some parts of the land that were deemed too dangerous to traverse through – namely the dreaded Everfree Forest. But while he had been there, he couldn't help but feel that the innocence and peacefulness had been palpable, and at times, it made him sick.

That wasn't to say that Kronos hated the place, far from it. But the land was boring to him. Which was why he was glad to see that Discord had started turning the land into the chaos capital of that world. And now he had been reformed – after being turned to stone twice and blown up once.

He hadn't been back there since Princess Luna had become corrupted by hatred and jealousy, but he had kept an eye on Equestria. He had seen everyone that had traveled there from other worlds, as well as when the six ponies known as the Elements of Harmony had traveled through dimensions to meet the Autobots again.

There had to be a reason that other worlds were being drawn there. But what? Why had Equestria always been the destination?

That world was very perplexing. And it seemed like all other worlds, one way or another, had some sort of connection with Equestria.

That was a problem for later; another world required his attention.

Earth.

For the past several months, Earth had been a battleground. First, due to Rita Repulsa accidentally being released from her prison on the planet Nemesis. But now, her superior in the United Alliance of Evil, Lord Zedd, had taken over, banishing Rita to the depths of space. Or he would have, if she hadn't accidentally ended up on Earth.

The funny thing was, Zedd had fallen into the same pattern as Rita. Rita had summoned monster after monster, and each one was defeated by this new team of superheroes on Earth – a team called the Power Rangers. Zedd had banished her for her failures and her incompetence, and yet, Rita actually had more victories than Zedd had. Rita had destroyed the Power Rangers' Megazord once; she had decimated their powers and destroyed their home base, temporarily severing their link with their mentor, the wizard Zordon. And all Zedd had accomplished so far was destroying the Green Ranger powers. That may have wiped the slate clean of all of Rita's failures, but the Rangers had bounced back, granting young Tommy Oliver the powers of the White Ranger, and that was on top of their new Thunderzords.

Kronos had to chuckle; Zedd was quickly becoming a joke. He had spied on the United Alliance of Evil and discovered that no one held Zedd in as much regard as they had before he took Rita's position.

Then again, the Alliance should have known better than to even try to attack Earth. This little planet had a habit of bouncing back against any adversity it faced.

From his cosmic observatory, Earth was no more than a tiny blue speck against a shroud of black. Mixed in with the blue were patches of green, brown, and white. It was no secret that among all the planets in the cosmos, Earth was perhaps the most beautiful, and in its solar system, it was the only one that could support life – it was in just the perfect position in orbit around its sun to produce oxygen and liquid water, the basis for all life.

All life except for cosmic beings such as Kronos.

Personally, he had never been to Earth, but he knew someone who had – a fellow named Beerus, who called himself the God of Destruction. He was responsible for the dinosaurs going extinct, and that was the most recent time he had visited the planet. All Kronos knew now was that Beerus was sleeping, and he would stay asleep for at least another five hundred years, assuming no one woke him prematurely.

Perhaps it was time to actually pay Earth a visit to see if it was worthy of its reputation.

Perhaps he could aid Lord Zedd with his troubles. He had been getting bored as of late, and he neded a little excitement. This could be just what he was looking for.

It would be easy for him to get to Zedd's lunar fortress on the moon orbiting Earth – he would be there in less than a minute. With his powers, traveling from one end of a universe to another was as simple as blinking his eyes. He simply needed to visualize his location, and he was there.

He saw Zedd's lunar fortress in his mind, and less than a minute later, he was standing in Zedd's throne room, the tip of Zedd's staff pointed at his chest.

"No one comes into my palace without my knowledge," he snarled. "Who are you? And why are you here?"

Kronos gently pushed Zedd's staff away from his chest. "My name is Kronos. I am the God of Dimensions. I know of your plight, Zedd, and I would like to offer you my assistance."

"What could you possibly offer me?"

"The chance to be rid of your enemies, of course. And the chance to rid us both of a possible nuisance."

"I have no idea what you're going on about."

"Do not play dumb, Zedd. You know very well that I'm talking about your battle with Earth's defenders, the Power Rangers."

Zedd lowered his staff. "I have no problem with the Power Rangers. I'll destroy them soon."

"I'm sure," Kronos said. He began walking around Zedd. "I'm sure you can handle them. After all, they are only human children."

"Are you mocking me?" Zedd asked.

"What would give you that idea? I'm merely offering you my aid. You don't need to take it. But it's there."

"Don't listen to him, My Lord," Goldar said. "It's obviously a trick."

"Oh, Goldar. Didn't see you there. You must enjoy your new life as Zedd's personal toe kisser. Considering that Rita is no longer around."

Goldar roared and charged at Kronos. Kronos simply held up a hand, stopping Goldar's charge.

"That was a mistake," Kronos calmly said. A flick of his wrist, and Goldar was sent careening into Zedd's throne. "Do not take me lightly, Goldar. I could destroy you with a single thought if I so desired. I could tear this entire universe asunder. I'm sure you would not want to be here when I do."

"Yes, your powers are impressive," Zedd said. "Now, let's assume that I take you up on your offer. What is this other possible nuisance you were talking about?"

"A world that has been pestering me lately," Kronos replied. "A world that, for whatever reason, has seemed to become a beacon for other worlds to connect to. Whether artificial or natural, these rifts – these nexuses – cannot go ignored. Equestria has become a thorn in my side as of late. And when I grow tired of a world, I eliminate it. I can eliminate Earth, too. I can, as the people of that planet are so fond of saying, kill two birds with one stone."

"Is that right?" Zedd asked. "And how do you intend to do that?"

A smile spread on Kronos's face.


	3. When Worlds Collide

WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE

DISCORD HUNG FROM THE ROOF, HIDING JUST OUT OF SIGHT OF CELESTIA AS SHE walked down the halls of the palace. The palace – primarily the north tower – had just finished being rebuilt after the recent Changeling invasion. Then again, most of Canterlot had to be rebuilt; not the first time – from what Discord had been told, when the Transformers came to Equestria, two Decepticons named Knock Out and Breakdown did some serious damage to the city.

The reason Discord was hiding was because of what Princess Luna had asked him to help her with; she loved to prank her older sister, and if somepony needed help pranking another pony, who better to ask than the master of chaos? Luna had been planning this prank since before Winter Wrap Up, which was just a few days ago.

The idea Luna had was to start off with something simple – floor tiles that squeaked when Celestia walked on them. Discord chuckled as the floor squeaked under Celestia's hooves, struggled to keep his laughter from echoing as Celestia looked around for the source of the noise.

Luna had also asked Discord to help her put up an anti-magic barrier on the door to Celestia's personal chambers, something Celestia had once done to Luna – the two sisters loved to prank each other; so much so that the ruins of the Royal Castle in the Everfree Forest was still laden with traps and gags that the two sisters would get each other with.

Of course, Celestia had anticipated that, and simply pushed the door open with her hoof. Discord huffed, but remembered that Luna had had one more thing in mind for the Sun Princess.

A cardboard cutout of Princess Luna shot down from the roof, smacking Celestia in the face. Celestia used a wing to push the cutout away from her face and read the sign tacked to it.

" 'Princess Luna is the greatest princess – Sun Butt can kiss it'." She laughed. "Very funny, Luna and Discord."

Discord dropped down from the roof. "What makes you think I had something to do with this?"

"Discord, I've known you for a long time. This is definitely something you and my sister would put together."

"Why my dear, beautiful Princess Celestia, you wound me." He conjured up a casket and lay down in it, a flower clasped in his mismatched hands. "It's enough to kill a guy. Wait, I've been dead before."

"So you have mentioned," Celestia said. She used her magic to gently toss the cutout at Discord. "If you'll excuse me, Discord, I have a message to send."

"To the delegates from Saddle Arabia, right? Look, I already said, if this has anything to do with the incident at Rhyda, I already apologized for it. How was I supposed to know that a prophet used to live in that house?"

"You could have asked before sneezing silly string all over it."

"I couldn't help it! I had allergies."

Celestia chuckled. Despite his past, Discord had managed to turn his life around after Fluttershy and her friends reformed him, and he brought a certain life to any location or situation. He was great fun at the most recent Grand Galloping Gala, and then there was the most recent Nightmare Night, where he was the true life of the party.

"That's not the reason I have to send this message," she said. "If you'll excuse me." She gently ushered him out of the room and shut the door behind him.

"Well, EXCUUUUUUUUUUSE ME, Princess," Discord huffed.

##########################

Even though winter had been wrapped up just a few days ago, there was still a chill in the air. Applejack couldn't help but shiver as she stepped outside. With the snow and ice gone for the next nine months, the orchard could grow again, but she still needed to check on the trees; it was right around this time of year where the vampire fruit bats began to move in, and Applejack didn't want them to get to the crop. They'd already decimated the south orchard; they didn't need to get to the rest.

She took a deep breath; the air was crisp, just as it should be on an early spring morning. The grass was still slick with dew. The larks began to sing their morning songs.

If Fluttershy lived at Sweet Apple Acres, she'd probably start singing along with the birds. Then again, she probably was over at her cottage. Fluttershy had made it a ritual to sing to her animals every morning from spring until autumn.

Applejack trotted over to the first tree in the west orchard. The apples were just starting to grow on its branches; it would be a few more weeks before they were ripe enough for harvest.

"Hayseed. Not ready yet." She gave the tree a little kick with her front hoof. "We was lookin' forward to this harvest, too."

The ground shook, only for a few seconds. It was enough to send Applejack toppling to the ground.

"Whoa nelly! What in tarnation was that? Earthquake?" She climbed to her hooves and looked back at the barn; nothing appeared to be damaged, save for Apple Bloom stumbling out of the door like she had drank one too many mugs.

"Apple Bloom!" She galloped over to her little sister. "Are you okay, sugar cube?"

Apple Bloom shook her head. "Yeah, I'm fine, Applejack. But what the hay was that?"

"A tremor," Applejack said. "But last time I checked, Ponyville wasn't nowhere near any fault lines. This is weird." She turned and started galloping towards town. "Stay here, Apple Bloom!"

#################################

Fluttershy had been hiding under the couch since the tremor hit. She'd never experienced an earthquake before, but it was one of the most terrifying few seconds of her life. She held Angel Bunny close, her grip tight on the poor bunny rabbit. He kicked away from her and hopped away.

"Angel, wait! There might be aftershocks!" She huddled under the couch for what felt like an eternity, but there was no more shaking. Slowly, she stepped out and made her way to the door.

Nothing seemed to be damaged, save for a few stray tree branches on the ground. Other than that, everything was just fine. How odd. Still, Fluttershy figured it could have been worse; Ponyville could have been completely ripped apart.

She surveyed the meadow, checking on the birdhouses and chicken coops and ferret holes and nests. Everything was exactly where it was supposed to be.

And yet, there was something different; a line in the ground that seemed to shimmer, as though it were giving off its own heat. An on the other side of the line, a grand city, not unlike some portions of Manehattan or Baltimare.

It wasn't there when Fluttershy had gone out to give her critters their breakfast. So how had it appeared?

"Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash called as she went streaking past. "Town meeting in the square. Get those wings flapping, sister – we're late!"

Fluttershy wasn't as fast a flyer as Rainbow Dash, so she found it difficult to keep up. She arrived at the town square just after Rainbow Dash did; the square was full of ponies from all over town, each one talking and clamoring on about the strange city that had appeared. Mayor Mare and Princess Twilight Sparkle were on the top of the stairs leading to the door of the town hall, hopelessly trying to get everypony to be quiet so they could talk.

"Everypony, please, calm down," Mayor Mare said. "Please!"

Twilight took a deep breath before screaming at the top of her lungs: "EVERYPONY QUIET!" The talking instantly stopped, more out of surprise than anything; it was rare for Twilight to raise her voice to such a level – when she did, it was clear that she was either very angry or very stressed.

In this case, stressed, as Fluttershy could tell from the strands of hair sticking out of Twilight's magenta mane and tail, and the way her wings were flared, the same way Rainbow Dash's wings would flare when she was getting frustrated.

"Thank you, Twilight," Mayor said. "Now, listen, everypony, I know we're all a little confused about what happened this morning."

"A little confused?" Golden Harvest screamed. "This city just popped up and ripped my carrot patch in two!"

"The flowers Rose and Lily and I were completely destroyed as well!" Daisy cried. "The horror! THE HORROR!" She fainted, rather melodramatically, even moreso than when Rarity did it.

"I must agree that this situation is quite dreadful," Rarity chimed in. "And it's not going to be very good for business here or in Canterlot."

"What I'm wonderin'," Applejack said, "is just how in the hay this happened? Cities don't just randomly pop up in the middle of your orchard, y'know, and it's almost Zap Apple Season! I tell ya, Granny Smith ain't too happy 'bout this."

"I wish I had answers for you all," Mayor said. "But I'm afraid that I don't at the moment."

"I bet I know someone who might," Twilight said.

"Please not him!" Rainbow Dash said, holding her front hooves in front of her like she were praying. "Anyone but – "

"Discord!" Twilight shouted, her horn glowing. Everypony in the square made room as Discord materialized in a flash of purple light.

The draconequus was pacing, muttering to himself.

"I swear, that Celestia can be such a – wait, this isn't the palace." He looked around, saw the ponies staring at him – most with shock and confusion, a few with fear; it was well-known throughout Equestria that Discord was no longer an evil creature, but his appearance alone was enough to cause ponies to panic sometimes. "Oh, um….HI EVERYPONY!" He whipped out a cane and a top hat and started doing a little dance. "A little morning entertainment?"

"That's not why I called you, Discord," Twilight said. She trotted down the stairs to him. "Equestria's got a problem, and I think you're the only one who can explain it."

"Whatever it is, I had nothing to do with it, I assure you."

"I'm not blaming you," Twilight said. "It's just, that, well…." She pointed to the shimmering city. "What in the hoof is that?!"

Discord looked at the city; scratched the little tuft of hair on his chin. "That's interesting." He walked over to the shimmering line and put a hand over it; his hand seemed to vanish. "That's very interesting." He pulled his hand back. "Too bad for you, I've never seen this sort of thing before."

"Oh come ON!" Rainbow Dash screamed. "Not even once?"

"Nope. No draconequus has ever done this. Not my pops Chaos, not my brother Havoc – kind of hard for them, since Pops kicked it and Havoc is stuck on that asteroid – and I can't do this. Traveling from one world to another is as simple as a blink of the eye, but merging two dimensions together? Even I don't have that kind of power."

"So that is another dimension, huh?" Twilight asked.

"Yup. I'm not entirely sure how this one merged with Equestria, but I do have a theory." He pulled down a cloud and flattened it out into a screen; set the screen on the banister of the town hall. He reached into his ear and pulled out a large projector, which he stuck onto Lyra Heartstring's horn. "Let me borrow you for a minute." He pushed a button on the projector, starting it up.

The video playing showed Discord playing with some dolls. He quickly turned the video off.

"Oops. Wrong reel." He pulled up a patch of the ground and took out another film reel, which he replaced with the one currently on the projector. "Here we go."

Instead of a video, it was a picture slideshow; the picture shown now was one of a solar system, with all the planets orbiting a sun. "Okay, this is our universe. One of hundreds in the multiverse." He pointed to a small blue and green planet. "And this is this universe's version of the planet Earth. There are hundreds of versions of this planet." He waved his hand over the screen, changing the picture. There was now a large cluster of nebulae on the screen, each one with a number on it, ranging from one to one thousand. "As you can see in this picture, there are more than one thousand variations of the same universe. Some of these universes have no life on them at all. Some have only humans. Our universe is the only one where ponies are the dominant species." A quick snap of his fingers, and the picture changed again; the nebulae were still shown, only now there were lines separating them from each other. "Each universe is divided by a sort of border. And though I can't merge dimensions, I do know that the laws of the universe state that these borders cannot be crossed. Not like that hasn't stopped it from happening over the last eighteen months."

Twilight smacked a hoof against her forehead. "Discord, can we please get to the point?"

"Hold your horses, I'm getting there." He chuckled. "See what I did there? Hold your horses? Anyway." He drew some lines through the borders with the tip of one of his eagle talons. "Sometimes, these borders get crossed anyway, thanks to what is known as a dimensional nexus. Most of the time, they appear naturally, but are invisible to the naked eye. But other times, these nexuses are made artificially. We've seen that plenty of times. In fact, I think the only natural nexus we've encountered was when Inuyasha and his crew were here before winter hit. All the others were artificial, be it through technology or magic." He coughed, changing the picture again; this one showed two nebulae meeting each other. "This is how a natural nexus is formed, though like I said, it's hardly ever noticed. What we're experiencing right now may be one of the few times where it IS noticed, though I don't have any substantial proof of that. Like I told you, I don't have that kind of power, and everything I've just said is merely speculation. Another bit of speculation for you – all the dimension hopping that's happened over the last year and a half may be the cause of all of this. The borders around our universe have gotten weak, allowing another universe to show itself to us."

"Okay, so let me get this straight," Twilight said. "You're saying that everyone who's come to visit Equestria and the two times we've gone to visit other worlds is what caused this?"

"I'm not blaming anyone," Discord told her. "Besides, it's not like you could have known. Even I would never have guessed that until I looked into it yesterday. Now, listen, I'm going to have to talk to Luna and Celestia about this, just to get their take on it."

"I'm coming with you," Twilight said.

Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash stepped forward. "We're going too," Rainbow Dash said. "We're a team, Twilight."

"She's right, darling," Rarity put in. "So no objections."

Discord pulled them all in around him. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's skidoo!" A second later, they were in the Canterlot throne room. The six ponies immediately bowed down before the two alicorns.

"Luna, Celestia, we've got a problem," Twilight said.

"Yes, we've noticed," Luna replied. "Unfortunately, we have no idea how it happened."

"Dipcord here thinks all the dimension hopping that's been happening might be why," Rainbow Dash said, pointing a hoof at Discord.

"It's just a theory," Discord said. "Like I told you all in Ponyville, I have no concrete evidence."

"I think there may be a way," Celestia told them. "But it will be dangerous, and I'm not sure I can ask you all to do it."

"I'm in!" Rainbow Dash cried. "Anything to figure out what's going on."

"I'm with Rainbow Dash," Pinkie Pie chirped. "It sounds like fun."

"It sounds scary," Fluttershy squeaked.

"I wouldn't mind going on another adventure," Rarity said. "I'm sure Sassy Saddles can handle the Canterlot Boutique."

"As long as we're back in time for Zap Apple Season," Applejack put in. "We've only got a few days."

"I'm sure it won't take that long," Twilight said. "But I also think Celestia's right. It's the only way to know what's going on." She turned to the princesses. "We just need to gather some supplies, and then we'll be ready to go."

"WHOO! ROAD TRIP!" Pinkie Pie cried.

"Okay, everypony," Twilight said. "Let's get what we need and meet at the rift in thirty minutes."

"We can't waste any time in there," Discord said. "We find what we need and then get out of there."

"Who said you were coming?" Rainbow Dash asked him.

"I did," Twilight said. "We might need his help."

"And my first step is taking you all home," Discord said, and with a snap of his fingers, they were gone.

#################################

Nearly half an hour had gone by, and Discord was starting to get impatient. He was pacing back and forth at the rift, constantly glancing back and forth between it and Ponyville, wondering just what in the hoof was taking everyone so stinking long.

As he paced back and forth, another thought popped into his head – what if someone had caused this rift? He'd heard stories of a cosmic being who could control the dimensions, but until now, he had dismissed those stories as just that. But the more he thought of it, the more sense it made.

"Whoever it is, you're messing with the wrong place," he said to no one in particular. "Sure, I'd probably enjoy seeing this place turned topsy-turvy but even then, I wouldn't want to see Equestria destroyed. I don't know who you are, but you've got me and the Elements of Harmony coming after you."

 _DISCORD: So you are trouble to our town,_

 _We are here to help you with your attitude._

 _Cuz ya think you're so bad,_

 _you're think you're so tough, huh?_

 _Ya better wave the white flag,_

 _or it'll be the end of you.._

 _The end of you.._

 _The end of you.._

He warped over to Sweet Apple Acres, just as Applejack was walking out the door. Her saddlebags were filled with ropes, some apples, and some other supplies that Discord couldn't see. He scooped her up in his arm.

"Hey! What in the hay do ya think you're doin'?"

"You and me are gonna gather our friends and go save the world," Discord said.

 _DISCORD: We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..from your kind._

 _We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..so now it's time..to unite!_

They warped over to Sugar Cube Corner, making Mr. and Mrs. Cake yelp with surprise. Pinkie Pie was just coming down the stairs, her saddlebags filled with what looked like party supplies – he could see confetti and party balloons poking out.

"Let's do this thing!" Pinkie Pie chirped.

They warped over to Carousel Boutique to pick up Rarity.

 _DISCORD: Did you really think you had a chance?_

 _Did you really think that we would fall apart?_

 _Ya think ya have a brain,_

 _but you're nothin but a dummy!_

 _Ya better run run now,_

 _Or it'll be the end of you.._

 _You'll find it's true.._

They warped over to Rainbow Dash's house in the clouds; she was doing wing ups – lowering herself to the ground and pushing herself back up with her wings. She leaped to her hooves and started flying around.

"Let's do this thing!"

 _DISCORD: We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..from your kind._

 _We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..so now it's time..to unite!_

They warped over to the meadow. Fluttershy came out of her cottage, her little bunny rabbit Angel hopping along right behind her. She turned around and lowered her head to speak to Angel.

"No, Angel. You have to stay here. I'm going on another dangerous mission; I don't want you to get hurt." Angel crossed his furry little arms. "I'm sorry, Angel. I need you to stay here. It's to protect you. Do you understand?" Angel nodded and slowly hopped back into the cottage.

Fluttershy turned and trotted over to her friends. "I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be," she squeaked.

"Then let's go get the princess," Discord said. They warped over to Twilight's palace. "Oh Twilight! Are you ready yet?"

Spike poked her head out of Twilight's personal quarters. "You're asking if Twilight's ready?" the young dragon asked. "This is Twilight Sparkle you're talking about here, Discord! She's got to check, double-check, triple-check, and recheck and recheck her list to make sure she's got everything ready!"

"Excuse me!" Rainbow Dash yelled into the room. "But aren't you the one who told us to meet at the rift in thirty minutes? Let's get our rumps moving, Twilight!"

Twilight used her magic to position her saddlebags on her back. "I'm coming! Geez." She trotted out of the room.

"Well, it's about damn time," Discord huffed. They warped over to the rift. "Let's do this!"

 _DISCORD: We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..from your kind._

 _We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..so now it's time.._

 _We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..from your kind._

 _We're here to save the world._

 _We're here to save the world tonight._

 _Save the world..so now it's time.._

 _To unite_

They all took a deep breath, and crossed the rift.


	4. Looking For Clues

LOOKING FOR CLUES

THE FIRST THING THEY NOTICED WHEN THEY CROSSED THE RIFT INTO THE CITY was the heat; in their world, spring had just come, so there was still a slight chill in the air. But here, it felt like a sweltering summer day. Heat was rising from the concrete roads and off of the buildings, making the air shimmer. There were very few clouds in the sky to block out the sun, making the air seem hotter than it really was.

"Here, y'all," Applejack said. She started passing out bottles of water. "It's a might warm in these here parts."

"Nothing a little rain can't fix," Discord said as he raised an arm.

Twilight used her magic to pull his arm back down. "Forget it. These people are probably already freaked out enough as it is; they don't need any of your antics to scare them anymore." She took a drink of water.

"Oh, fine," Discord huffed. He crossed his arms and pouted.

"So, what's the plan, Twi?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"First, I think we need a Pegasus' eye view of this city," Twilight said. "Rainbow Dash, you want to take care of that?"

"One hoofstep ahead of you," Rainbow Dash replied as she zoomed high into the sky. She shielded her eyes with a hoof as she surveyed the city. From this vantage point, the city looked like it was a little bit smaller than Canterlot, maybe two miles across by five miles long. She could see a lush, green park in the center of the city. Strange, four-wheeled vehicles moved through the streets, along with some two-wheeled vehicles she recognized as bicycles. The other vehicles, though, she had only seen twice before, and she doubted any of them transformed into twenty foot tall robots. She could still feel the heat coming off of the buildings, creating thermals that slowly lifted her higher and higher into the air. What few people she could see were either commuting – going about their daily business – or staring at the rift.

A few people even noticed her. She could catch small snippets of their conversations.

"What in the world is that thing? There in the sky?"

"A bird?"

"Looks like some sort of flying horse."

 _Okay, I think I've seen enough,_ Rainbow Dash thought. She lowered herself back to the ground.

"Well?" Rarity asked. "How is everything?"

"Actually looks pretty calm," Rainbow Dash answered. "I saw a park in the center of the city. And it's a pretty decent sized city, too. Might take us a while to wander through the whole thing if we want to find out what's going on."

Twilight rubbed her chin with a hoof. "How far away is this park?"

"Looks like it's about a mile away," Rainbow Dash said. "Why?"

"We can use that as a meeting place after we look around," Twilight said. "Let's split up and search the city for any clues as to what's happening. We'll look for two hours before meeting up in the park. And about the humans, if there are any – let's act casual. No talking; that might scare them."

"We've already seen when that happens," Rarity whispered.

"But let's also try to avoid the humans if we can," Twilight continued. She couldn't help but glance over to Fluttershy; once, when humans came to Equestria, she had nearly been cut open for study. One of the humans had rescued her, but at the cost of his life. Though Fluttershy didn't show it, Twilight knew that she still thought about that moment sometimes, and knew that she would rather not repeat it.

She turned her eyes to Discord. "And no antics from you unless you absolutely have to. Understand?"

"Draconequss's honor," Discord said; he put his left hand over his heart and rose his right hand into the air. "I won't use any powers unless it's in self-defense."

"Just try not to turn anyone into a puddle of ooze or whisk them to some weird puppet dimension," Fluttershy said.

"Okay, let's do this!" Rainbow Dash cried. "Ready? BREAK!" She zoomed off.

"Rainbow, casual!" Twilight called after the blue Pegasus. "No flying! No talking! Try to lay low! Oh, why in the hoof do I even bother sometimes?" She turned to everypony else. "Please be careful."

They wished each other luck, and headed off in separate directions.

##########################

Farkus "Bulk" Bulkmeier and Eugene "Skull" Skullovich were just as confused as everyone else in Angel Grove. Being located in southern California, it wasn't uncommon for a few small tremors to hit from time to time, but this one had been different. After all, how many tremors made some strange town show up from thin air? It was…very strange.

They had been in the Youth Center when the tremor hit. Ernie had calmed everyone down, telling them that it was just a small tremor, but when they all stepped outside, they saw the other town – at least, it looked like a town. There weren't any paved roads, and all the houses looked like they were made out of wood and straw. And there were no people around! The people of Angel Grove had gotten used to seeing strange and unusual things since Rita Repulsa, and later Lord Zedd, first showed up, but this was strange even by those standards.

Maybe Lord Zedd was behind this. It did seem like something he would do, given what the Power Rangers had said.

This was beyond Bulk and Skull, so they figured it would be better to let the Power Rangers deal with this. After all, they had been dealing with all the problems in Angel Grove, from monster attacks to petty crimes like robbery and drugs; so much so that the police were getting complacent, letting the Power Rangers handle everything.

Bulk noticed something out of the corner of his eye; he turned to look, saw what looked like a small horse. He grabbed Skull's arm and pointed to the horse. It was about three and a half, maybe four, feet tall, with dark orange fur, a bright yellow mane and tail – both tied into ponytails at the ends – white dots that looked like freckles on its face, three apple-shaped brands on its hindquarters, and a tattered brown Stetson atop its head.

"You thinking what I'm thinking, Skull?" Bulk asked.

"Yeah," Skull said. "They're finally making a Mr. Ed movie."

"No, you idiot," Bulk hissed. "Some farmer lost his horse in the city. We catch the horse, put the word out, and Farmer John comes by with a reward – maybe a lot of money. Money we can use to fund our search for the Power Rangers."

"Ah, good idea, Bulkie," Skull said. "Glad you thought of it."

They started following the little horse, making sure to stay far behind so that it didn't know they were behind it; they didn't want to scare the horse. Every now and then, it would stop to look behind it, and when it did, Bulk and Skull ducked behind whatever they could to hide – trash cans, Dumpsters, cars. They waited a few seconds before following the horse again.

The horse stopped to sniff when they reached the corner of Grove and Tenth. They hid behind a parked car, keeping their eyes on the horse.

A woman and a little girl went walking past. The little girl started tugging on her mom's hand.

"Mommy, Mommy, look, a pony! Can I pet the pony, Mommy? Please?"

"No, honey, I think the pony belongs to someone. Come on; let's keep going."

"Bye bye, Pony!"

Skull tapped Bulk on the arm. "Hey Bulk, maybe the heat's messing with my eyes, but did that horse just smile?"

"It is the heat," Bulk grumbled. "Horse is moving. Come on."

"Hey, what are we gonna do when we catch it? Thing might try to fight us off. And I'm pretty sure getting kicked by a horse hurts."

"Then try not to get kicked." They started following the horse again.

A gust of wind came, knocking the Stetson off the horse's head.

##############################

Applejack let out a silent huff as her hat was blown off of her head. But she couldn't do anything about it, not with these two humans behind her.

She hadn't let the two humans – two boys, it seemed – know that she was aware of them; she was still trying to act casual, though she had no clue how well she was doing. She didn't know how equines in other worlds were supposed to act! What did they do, eat grass and hay all day?

She put those thoughts aside; she was more worried about her hat not being on her head. The only time she liked not wearing her hat was when she was sleeping; other than that, she felt awkward without it. Her Pa had given her that very hat before he died, so there was some sentimental value there.

She ducked behind one of the parked cars and peeked out. One of the humans, the skinny one, was looking over her hat.

"Heh. Cool." He slipped the hat onto his head and turned to his friend – the larger, fatter human. "Hey Bulk! How do I look?"

"Like an idiot, Skull," Bulk said. "Take that thing off your head; it might have lice."

 _LICE?! Why, I never –_ She may have been born and raised in a barn, but Applejack knew a thing or two about personal hygiene. She showered; she washed her mane and tail every night! Saying that she had lice and fleas, it was an insult to her! Not even Rarity had the gall to say such a thing!

Applejack stepped out from behind the car and glared at Bulk and Skull. Skull took the hat off of his head as Bulk started to talk.

"Hey there, Horsie," he said. "How about you come with us? We won't hurt you."

 _The hay with layin' low, Twi; these two've got it comin'._ She took a small step forward. "Hey! You two mind tellin' me just why in the hoof y'all are followin' me around?" The two humans started backing away, fear in their faces and their eyes. "Don't think I haven't noticed; I could smell ya sneakin' up on me. And I want answers, dag nabbit!"

Skull dropped the hat. Bulk put his hands up, crossing his fingers. They backed up even more, stuttering and sputtering as they tried to find the right words.

"That horse just tal….tal…Spa…spake….it just, it just, it just it just it just it just…."

Applejack picked up her hat and placed it back on her head. "And another thing, fellas – I DO NOT HAVE LICE!"

"DEMON HORSE!" Bulk and Skull yelled. "DEMON HORSE! DEMON HORSE!" They turned and started running away.

"Yeah, you two'd better run!" Applejack called after them. "I catch y'all followin' after me again, I'll buck your knees out! Y'hear!" She snorted and kept walking, heading down the street.

###########################

Rainbow Dash hated walking. It was no fun being grounded; she needed to fly! A Pegasus belonged in the air! She couldn't understand why Fluttershy insisted on hoofing it everywhere; Rainbow Dash needed to be above the ground, not on it.

Still, if she were going to "act casual", as Twilight had said, she needed to keep all four hooves on the ground; the hot, sweltering ground. She kept her eyes forward, kept her wings folded against her body; ignored the prying, confused eyes of all the humans, the barks of the dogs, and the little kids wanting to pet her. Normally, she wouldn't have minded all the attention, but these humans were probably a little shaken up from this place getting merged with Equestria; if she started strutting her ego around them, that would really make them scream. She'd seen humans' reactions to her and her friends – they ranged from confusion to fright.

She had been looking for at least forty-five minutes, and hadn't found anything to help her figure the situation out. For all intents and purposes, this city seemed normal – at least, normal for humans.

 _I wonder if everypony else is having any luck?_ she thought.

A strange noise caught her attention; it sounded like the howl of a timberwolf, constantly raising and lowering in pitch. She glanced over her shoulder. A black and white vehicle was approaching. She leaped to the side, avoiding the vehicle as it pulled up against the sidewalk. Two humans, both dressed in dark blue uniforms, stepped out.

"Is this it?" one of the humans asked.

"Matches the description," the other human said. "Though don't you think we should let Animal Control handle this? This is a job for the ASPCA, not Angel Grove PD."

Rainbow Dash cocked her head to one side; she flicked her tail. What were these humans talking about? ASPCA? Animal Control? She had no idea what those terms meant, though she was sure that these humans just saw her as another animal.

One of the humans moved towards her, holding his hand out. "Come on, horsie. Let's get you away from the road."

"I still think it's a little weird to be dealing with a blue horse," the other human said. "Maybe it's some kind of experiment, or an undiscovered species."

Rainbow Dash moved away from the human moving towards her. She flared her wings, getting ready to fly away.

"Oh, no you don't," the human said. He leaped at Rainbow Dash. She flew into the air, barely avoiding the human. Both humans looked up at her in shock as she hovered above them.

"Let's get one thing straight, boys," she said. "I'm not a horse. I'm a Pegasus. And I'm certainly no animal. You want to capture me and take me Celestia knows where to do Celestia knows what, then I suggest you learn how to fly. Later, dudes." She zoomed off into the sky, leaving the two humans below.

"You, uh, you wanna call that in?"

"Call WHAT in?"

Rainbow Dash landed on the roof of a tall skyscraper and folded her wings against her body. "Geez. Some humans."

"You're telling me."

Discord was laying back on a beach chair, a mirror in his hands, bouncing the sun's rays onto his face. His asymmetrical eyes were covered by a pair of dark sunglasses. He lowered his sunglasses as he turned to Rainbow Dash.

"So, no luck, then?"

"Nope. And what about you? Lounging around up here, doing nothing."

"I must correct you," Discord said. He stood up, kicking the beach chair away. "I haven't been doing 'nothing'. I was merely taking a break from my search. If you really want to know, I HAVE found nothing, unfortunately. Except for a book that a human threw at my face. That hurt! My nose is gonna be sore for a week."

Rainbow Dash waved a dismissive wing at him. "That doesn't help." She flared her wings and got ready to fly again. "I'm going to make a few rounds before meeting up with everypony at the park. Later." She flew off.

##################################

Fluttershy couldn't help but be scared. This was a world she didn't recognize; there were no Saiyans around, no Autobots, her friends were off scouring the city. It was all she could do to hide in this little back alley, away from the eyes of the humans, away from the speeding vehicles that had nearly hit her when she tried to cross the street. This world….It was terrifying.

She wanted to ignore the noise behind her, but she couldn't help but look. There were two humans – two males – beating up another human – another male. The man on the ground, the one getting beat up, was crying for help between his cries of pain.

Fluttershy was scared, even so, she couldn't stand seeing someone who was defenseless getting hurt. She trotted over to the three humans.

"Um, excuse me," she said quietly. "I think he would appreciate it if you stopped hitting him." No response. "Please? Pretty please?" Still, it was like the humans didn't hear her.

 _Okay, Fluttershy, time to be assertive, even if that means using The Stare._ She pushed her way between them, staring up at the two humans who were hurting the other one.

"How dare you!" she screamed. "Listen here, boys, just because you're big, that doesn't mean that you get to be a couple of bullies! You may be tall and have big muscles and iron rods and metal chains, but you do not – I repeat, you do NOT! HURT! THOSE! SMALLER THAN YOU! You got that, boys?" She turned to the victim. "Are you okay? They didn't hurt you too bad, did they?"

The man who was getting beaten backed away from her. "Stay back! Stay away from me, you freak!" He climbed to his feet and ran off as fast as he could.

Fluttershy's baby pink mane covered her face; she'd forgotten how rude some humans could be. She had just rescued him, and he repaid her by calling her such a horrible name. Why? Why did humans have to repay kindness with hatred?

"Hey! Horse!" She looked behind her to see the other two humans brandishing their weapons – one an iron rod, the other a long chain. "I don't know how you did that whole chit-chat thing, but no one, not even an animal, gets between us and the people we're beating. Guess we'll have to settle with you, fuzz ball."

Fluttershy shrunk down, lowering herself to the ground as much as she could. "Oh my."

The human with the rod raised it. He stopped, but not by choice – an eagle's talons hand grabbed his hand.

"Excuse me."

Discord, standing behind the two men.

He turned the man with the rod around. "But what do you think you're doing?" he hissed. The only response he got from the two men was a scream.

The man with the rod raised it. Discord snapped his fingers, turning the man's body into that of a toad – a toad with a human's head. The man with the chain tried to run away; Discord wiggled his nose, melting the man's shoes to the concrete.

"If you two ever try to harm Fluttershy again, I won't hesitate to turn your life into a living misery. You got that, you punks?" Discord growled. He could be scary when he wanted to be. "Now, I'm going to let you two go, but if I ever catch you harassing my friend again, you won't enjoy the outcome." He snapped his fingers; the man who had been turned into a toad was back in his normal body, and the man whose feet had been melted to the ground was free to run.

Which they did, running as fast as they could.

"Are you okay, Fluttershy?" Discord asked.

"A little shaken up, but I'm okay," Fluttershy replied. "I stopped those two humans from hurting another, but the one I helped – he called me a terrible name."

Discord patted Fluttershy on the back. "I know how you feel. But that's not important. What have you learned about the rift?"

"Nothing, I'm afraid. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. I haven't found anything either. So let's just get to that park and meet up with everyone, shall we?" He scooped Fluttershy up in his arms and snapped his fingers, warping them to a secluded part of the park.

################################

Pinkie Pie was supposed to be looking for clues and maintaining a low profile, but not talking for a long time? Not an option for her. The only time she ever not talked was when she was sleeping. She needed to talk, and when she heard the sounds of a party, she figured that that was her opportunity.

It looked like a birthday party. There were tables lined with all kinds of treats – cakes, cookies, chips, cupcakes, and some meat products – those made the bile rise in her throat. Why couldn't they have had carrot dogs? Those were tasty, especially when drenched with ranch dressing.

The smell of chocolate candy wafted into her nostrils; the scent was coming from the straw piñata hanging from a tree, a piñata that some kids were now trying to hit with their sticks. One of the kids was bound to get a lucky hit and knock the candy out.

Pinkie's body was shaking with anticipation. She wanted so badly to go over there and join the party, to show them just how they partied in Ponyville. She wanted to try that cake – it looked so bucking delicious! She wanted to try the cupcakes, the chips, the cookies, the candy in the piñata….She wanted to try it all! She would share with the partygoers, of course.

"Gotta PARTY!" She galloped over to the party and leaped up onto the table with the treats. "Cakes! Cupcakes! Cookies! Chips!" She took large bites of each, even taking a cupcake from one woman's plate. "You gonna eat that?"

"What the hell is that?"

"Okay, who brought the horse?"

"Mommy, Mommy, a pink pony! Can I have one please?"

One of the humans, a woman, started shoving Pinkie back. "Go on! Get out of here!"

"But somepony needs to liven up this party, and who better than the best party pony in Equestria!" She pushed past the human and climbed back onto the table. "Come on, people, let's really get this party started! Who's the birthday foal?"

A black and green vehicle – it looked like some kind of truck – pulled up into the driveway. Two humans climbed out and reached into the back, pulling out long white poles with wires at the end.

"We got a call about a rogue horse here," one of the men said.

"I think that's it," the other man said. He pointed to Pinkie.

"Oh, did you come to join the party too?" Pinkie Pie asked. "The pinata's right over there. Need me to show you how to hit it?"

The two humans came at Pinkie. "Come on, horsie. Let's get you back to the funny farm."

"Since when is a horse pink? Since when can a horse talk?"

"We'll worry about that later. Just catch it."

"Oh, oh, is this a game?" Pinkie asked excitedly. "Are we playing tag? Okay. YOU'RE IT!" She leaped off the table and happily skipped away from them. "Try to catch me! I bet you can't!" She spotted Rarity standing a few yards away. "Hi Rarity! Did you come to play too? Those men are It! Don't let them catch you!"

Rarity rolled her sapphire-blue eyes. "Okay, Pinkie Pie, I think you've had enough fun." She used her magic to hold Pinkie in place. "I'm so terribly sorry that my friend interrupted your party, everyone! I'll make sure it never happens again!" She pulled Pinkie closer to her. "I may have found something out. Now let's go." She used her magic to teleport them to the park – Twilight had taught her the spell during the winter at Rarity's request, so as to save time from traveling between Carousel Boutique in Ponyville and Canterlot Boutique in Canterlot. Everyone else was already there.

Everyone except for one.

"Has anyone seen Twilight?" Rarity asked.

"Not since we split up earlier," Fluttershy replied. "Oh, I do hope she's okay."

"I'm sure she's fine, sugar cube," Applejack said as she patted Fluttershy on the back. "That pony can handle herself."

"Maybe, but she's out there all by herself!" Rainbow Dash cried. "I say we go look for her!"

"Do you even know where to start looking?" Discord asked. "Even I don't know that."

Rainbow Dash huffed. As much as she hated to admit, Discord did have a point.

"Maybe she got caught up at a super fun reading party," Pinkie Pie suggested. "She found a book club or a library or something!"

"I doubt it," Rarity said. "But what should we do?"

"I say we split up and look for her," Applejack said. "And fooey on keepin' a low profile. That didn't work out so well for me, and I'm gussin' that the rest of ya didn't have a whole lotta luck with that either." She was answered by five shaking heads. "Thought so." She scraped a hoof on the ground. "Okay, I saw we split up into two teams of three. I'll go with Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash, that means you're with Fluttershy and Discord."

"You're teaming me up with the weirdo?" Rainbow Dash demanded. "You know how I feel about Discord!"

Discord put a hand over his chest. "Knife through my heart, my dear Rainbow Dash. Wait." He pushed his hand into his chest and pulled out a small shard of metal. "Huh. That's been in there ever since that kid stabbed me. Here I thought I had an irregular heartbeat." He tossed the shard away; it exploded when it landed. "Okay, Applejack, since you're the head mare, where are we going to meet up when we find little miss Purple Smart?"

"Right back here," Applejack replied. "Let's mosey, y'all."

#############################

Why she bothered to check the desert she didn't know, but now Twilight was beginning to regret her decision. She should have known better, especially since she only had the one bottle of water on her – the one Applejack had given her. And now it was almost empty, because like a foolish filly, Twilight had drank almost all of it; there was only a small drop in the bottle now.

The heat in the city should have been enough to clue her in, but she still decided to explore. And now she was mentally kicking herself for it. She was exhausted; her mouth had gone dry long ago; her tongue was swollen; the fur on her forehead was sticking to her skin thanks to all the sweat; she was foaming at the mouth.

She used her magic to lift the bottle and unscrew the lid; she was so weak that even using her alicorn magic was difficult. She stuck her tongue out, waiting for the last precious drops of water to land on it, but before even that could happen, she felt her legs give out; she fell to the sweltering hot sand, and darkness took her.


	5. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS

THE SIX OF THEM WERE IN THE YOUTH CENTER WHEN THE TREMOR HIT. ERNIE had told everyone that it was just a small tremor, but they knew better. They knew better than to assume that any earthquake was natural, that any natural disaster was a random fluctuation of the earth.

This had to be Zedd's doing.

Jason had been leading his karate class at the time. Billy had progressed in the year since he signed up, going from a white belt to a brown belt faster than anyone had anticipated. Of course, Billy had had some extra training by Trini and her uncle Howard.

Zack, once again, was trying to put the moves on Angela, only to be shot down. The poor guy really had to just stop; he was getting nowhere with that girl. The tremor had knocked Kimberly off of the balance beam; that annoyed her, but at least the mats on the floor softened her fall. Trini and Tommy had been sparring when the tremor hit; that resulted in a rather awkward moment where Trini had fallen onto Tommy, knocking him to the ground and landing on top of him.

Now that everything had calmed down, the six of them were sitting at one of the tables in the restaurant area of the Youth Center, trying to figure out what to do.

"Are you sure Zedd's to blame?" Zack asked. "How do we know this wasn't an actual little tremor? They happen sometimes."

"This has Zedd's name written all over it," Jason whispered. He kept glancing around; no one was supposed to know who they really were, what sort of double-life these six teenagers lived.

It was hard to believe that nearly a year had gone by since Jason, Billy, Trini, Zack, and Kimberly were first recruited by Zordon to battle the forces of evil – led by the witch Rita Repulsa – as the Power Rangers. Tommy had joined them some time later, after being freed from one of Rita's evil spells. After many hard battles, Rita was banished by her superior, Lord Zedd, who proceeded to destroy Tommy's powers, before he was granted the powers of the White Ranger.

So thinking that what happened this morning was Zedd's doing wasn't too farfetched for them. After all, any strange or unusual thing that happened anymore could be attributed to Zedd.

"I think maybe we should talk to Zordon and Alpha about this," Kimberly suggested. "They might know a little bit more about what happened this morning than we do."

"That's a good idea," Jason agreed with a nod.

They looked around to make sure no one was looking, before standing up and heading for the cubbyhole behind the entrance; it was the only secluded place in this Youth Center. After glancing around one more time, they pressed a button on the wrist communicators that Billy had developed.

They expected to be in the Command Center.

Instead, they remained where they were.

"Try again," Billy said. They did; nothing. "Huh. Something must have thrown the calibration off."

"Then I guess we're getting there the old fashioned way," Tommy said.

"Yeah," Jason nodded. "Get the quads."

###########################

The six ATVs sped across the desert sands. The only thing protecting them from the hot winds was their motorcycle helmets and vests. As they went, they couldn't help but glance over at the shimmering village. Why was it here? How had it happened? All these questions, and more, went through their heads as they sped along.

Billy had wired the helmets with a speaker and microphone system, allowing them to communicate. It worked in the city, where they still had to maintain their cover, but out here, in the middle of nowhere, it seemed a little unnecessary. Still, they figured it would be a good idea to use them, if only to keep both hands on their handlebars.

Kimberly spotted something out of the corner of her eye; she barely noticed it through the dust the other quads were kicking up. Whatever it was, was lying on the ground. As she passed by, it looked like some sort of equine creature. She only caught a glimpse of it, but it was enough to know that something was wrong.

"Guys, stop!" she cried into the microphone. She squeezed the brake handle and spun the ATV around, coming to a stop right next to the equine. It was hard to get a good look with the visor down on her helmet; she lifted it up, before taking the helmet off. "What in the world?"

Everyone else came to a stop. "Kimberly, what are you doing?" Zack asked. "We're kind of in a hurry."

Kimberly didn't answer; she was too fixated on this strange-looking horse lying unconscious on the ground. She'd seen plenty of horses in her life; her grandparents ran a horse ranch just outside of town, and she would visit every summer. She'd seen so many horses, ponies, donkeys, and mules, but never one that looked like this. It was female, around three and a half, maybe four feet, tall – the size of a carousel horse – but the colors were all wrong; the fur was lavender, the mane and tail were a dark shade of purple with a magenta and lavender stripe running through them; the marking on its flank could have been taken as a farmer's brand, but Kimberly doubted – the mark was one large, purple star surrounded by several smaller, silver stars. And then there was the fact that this horse had a pair of wings and a horn atop its head.

 _Either this is a mirage, or I'm looking at an actual alicorn!_

"Kimberly, what are you doing?" Tommy asked.

"Guys, we can't leave her out here," Kimberly said. "She could die."

"And what, exactly, are you going to do with it?" Jason asked. "We don't have time to take it to a vet."

"I know," Kimberly replied. She slipped her hands under the alicorn's body and gently lifted her up – she was surprisingly light, maybe no less than forty pounds. "Unfortunately, there's only one place I can think of to take her where there's shade."

"You don't mean…." Jason started to say. He stopped; he realized what Kimberly had in mind. "Oh man, Zordon's not going to be happy."

Kimberly set the alicorn down on the ATV's metal rack. "He'll get over it. I'm not going to leave her out here to die." She slipped her helmet on and climbed back onto the quad. "Let's go."

##########################

The Command Center was a large structure situated atop a large rock in the middle of the desert. It was a large, cylindrical building, with a smaller cylinder attached; the smaller cylinder resembled the feed silo on a barn, just without the domed top. Inside the Command Center was the main atrium, with the control consoles, Zordon's tube, and the viewing globe; beneath the Command Center was a labyrinth of tunnels in which a person could get lost for days and not find their way out. It was a high-tech facility created by Zordon over ten thousand years ago during the initial battle against Rita – the battle that left him in his current state, trapped in a time warp with the tube being the only means of communication he had with the outside world – and was only accessible to those with a Power Coin, or anyone brought here by Zordon or the Power Rangers.

Since they didn't teleport here, they had to go in through the doors built into the structure. The doors resembled the doors seen on airplane hangars; they slid open as the six quads approached. The six teenagers climbed off and removed their helmets, Kimberly gently cradling the purple pony in her arms.

"Billy, there's a table against that wall; bring it. Trini, get that pitcher and fill it with water. This pony's going to need quite a bit."

Tommy rolled his eyes. "I'm telling you, Zordon's going to be pissed."

"It's Kimberly, dude," Zack replied. "She always gets like this when horses are involved. Though I'm going to be honest here – that thing looks pretty weird. I mean, a purple horse with wings and a horn? Yeah, that's weird."

"That's saying something, considering some of the weird things we've seen," Trini said as she filled a pitcher with water from a nearby sink. "But her mind's made up."

"I guess so," Jason said as they followed Kimberly down the hall. Jason had to help Billy carry the table – Billy wasn't physically weak, but the table was still too heavy for one person.

They made their way to the main atrium. The little robot, Alpha Five, was busy working the controls. He was the size of a small child, just shy of four feet tall, with a head shaped like a classic flying saucer. His arms and legs looked like they were made out of tubes. Knobs and buttons were all over his torso, surrounding a flashing lightning bolt-shaped emblem. A red line ran horizontal along the front of his face.

He waved his arms above his head as Billy and Jason set the table down. "Ai yi yi yi yi! Rangers, what is going on?"

Kimberly gently put the alicorn on the table. "We found her unconscious in the desert. Couldn't take her anywhere else," Kimberly hastily explained. "Trini, I need that water."

"Why not just dump the water down its throat and be done with it?" Zack asked. "I know that when I'm hot I guzzle the stuff."

Kimberly turned to glare at Zack. "If I make her guzzle this water, she might drown." She dipped two fingers into the pitcher and placed them against the pony's mouth. "I have to give her just a few drops, enough to rehydrate her."

Zordon's deep, booming voice filled the room. "Kimberly, what are you doing?" He didn't sound angry, more confused.

"Zordon, I'm sorry," Kimberly said. "But there was no way I was just going to let her die out there." She put some more water into the pony's mouth, gently making her drink. "Come on, little pony, stay with us."

Jason pressed a hand against his forehead; they had more important things to worry about than some purple pony. He turned to Zordon and Alpha. "Do you know anything about what happened this morning?"

"We've been looking into it," Alpha replied. "But so far, we haven't gotten any information."

"All we can say is that that tremor must have merged this world with another," Zordon said. "I've always believed that such a feat was impossible."

"Scientifically speaking, it should be," Billy said. "Zordon, I'm sure you're well aware of the multiverse theory, but I doubt it mentions anything about two or more alternate worlds merging."

"You're right, Billy, it doesn't," Alpha said. "Ai yi yi. This is very strange."

"Considering that our lives haven't exactly been normal for a while," Tommy whispered to Zack, who just nodded in response.

Trini joined Kimberly, just as Kim poured a few drops of water down the pony's throat. "Do you think she's going to be okay?"

"She'll be fine," Kimberly said. "We got her here just in time. If we hadn't found her, she'd have roasted to death out there. But still, I've never seen a pony that looked like this. I think she might be a real alicorn."

"A what?" Jason asked as he joined them.

"Think of a mix between a unicorn and a Pegasus," Kimberly answered. "It's so strange."

Trini ran a hand along the pony's side; the lavender fur felt warm and soft beneath her skin. "Her fur….It's so soft. And you have to admit, she may look strange, but she is a beautiful horse."

"Yeah," Kimberly agreed.

"Heard you say Mr. Ed is going to live," Zack said.

"Zack, the pony is a female," Kimberly told him. "And yes, she's going to be fine. She might wake up at any time. In which case, we should probably give her some room. Horses are a little skittish."

The pony's eyes slowly fluttered open. "Everyone back up," Kimberly said. She waved her friends back. "Back up; give her space."

They all backed away as the pony slowly lifted her head off of the table to look around. She slipped off of the table, landing shakily on all four hooves; her legs shook as she tried to find her center of balance. Her eyes then turned to the six teenagers standing before her.

"Get down," Kimberly whispered.

"What? Why?" Zack asked.

"The smaller we are, the less threatening we'll seem," Kimberly replied. "Just get down as low as you can. And don't make any sudden moves. Remember, she's going to be a little skittish." They slowly lowered themselves onto their hands and knees.

Kimberly slowly crawled forward, one hand held out, palm up. "Come on," she said, her voice as calm and soothing as possible. "It's okay. We won't hurt you. Come on." She clicked her tongue. "Come on, girl."

The pony looked around, taking in her new surroundings. Kimberly was sure that this was all very strange for her, that she was probably a little frightened. And when equines are frightened, they tended to do some damage. She once saw a donkey destroy half of her grandparents' barn once when a bear walked past the farm.

The pony turned to Alpha, before settling on Zordon. Her mouth opened.

Kimberly had expected a whinny, a frightened neigh, not a human-like scream.

She also didn't expect its horn to be surrounded by a light purple glow; didn't expect the horn to fire out what looked like a laser beam that bounced off the walls and roof and ceiling, just barely missing everyone's heads.

"Watch it!"

"Look out!"

"Heads up!"

"Whoa!"

The laser hit Alpha square in the backside. "Yeow! Ai yi yi yi yi! That smarts!"

"What the hell was that?" Jason cried.

Kimberly opened her mouth to respond, but the pony began to speak before she could.

"Who are you people? Where am I? Where are my friends? And what IS THAT THING?!"

Zack rubbed his ear. "Okay, either I'm going crazy, or that horse just talked."

The pony stomped her hoof on the floor. "I demand answers, damn it!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," Kimberly said. "Please, just calm down. And no more lasers. We're not going to hurt you. We found you in the desert and nursed you back to health."

"Who's we?" the pony demanded.

"Me and my friends," Kimberly replied. _I can't believe I'm talking to a talking pony,_ she thought. She shook her head. "My name is Kimberly Hart. These are my friends – Jason Scott, Tommy Oliver, Trini Kwan, Billy Cranston, Zack Taylor, Zordon, and Alpha Five. Um….What's your name?"

"My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria."

For a few seconds, no one said anything – they were all processing this new information; Kimberly still found it difficult to believe that she was talking to a living alicorn capable of human speech; Jason had his arms crossed, as he usually did when he was thinking about something; Tommy was shaking his head in disbelief; Trini put a hand on Kimberly's shoulder – Kim could tell that Trini was just as confused; Zack had his hands on his hips; Billy adjusted his glasses; Alpha was prancing around the room, waving his arms above his head in confusion; Zordon simply stared at the pony – at Princess Twilight Sparkle – who stared back at everyone, her big, purple eyes filled with fear and confusion.

"You still haven't answered my other questions," Twilight said. "Where am I, and where are my friends?"

"You're at our Command Center," Kimberly said, still keeping that soothing tone to her voice. "Like I said, we found you in the desert, and this was the safest place we could bring you."

"And my friends?"

"We just found you," Jason said. "Half-dead. You're lucky."

Twilight lowered her eyes to the floor. "Then….Then my friends are still exploring the city. They don't know where I am. They must be looking for me."

Zack raised a hand. "I've got a question – Miss Pony, where the heck did you come from?"

Twilight turned her eyes to Zack. "What part of 'Equestria' did you not understand?"

"That whole word," Billy replied. "I'm not familiar with it."

"Billy, Equestria is the name of the princess's home land," Zordon said. "It resides in a dimension similar yet separate from this one."

"I can't believe I'm about to agree with a giant talking head in a glass tube," Twilight said. "My friends and I were sent here to figure out just what this world was and why it merged with Equestria. We think the tremors had something to do with it, but we're not too sure."

"You were hit with tremors too?" Trini asked. "Then that really is another world we've been seeing today."

"Something opened up that rift," Twilight went on. "Discord thinks it might have been a natural rift, but Luna and Celestia weren't so sure."

"Is anyone else finding this extremely weird?" Tommy asked. "I'm having difficulty wrapping my head around all of this."

The alarms began blaring before anyone could answer. Twilight pressed her ears against the sides of her head.

"Ow! Pony feathers, that's loud! Seriously, what the buck!"

"Guys, look at the viewing globe," Jason said, leading everyone over to the crystal ball in the back of the room. The image playing was that of three more ponies in the park – two normal looking ponies, not counting the fact that one of the ponies was bright pink in color, and a pearl white unicorn – being harassed by a group of Putty Patrollers. Another image took its place, this one in a construction site with two winged ponies being harassed by another group of Putties led by Goldar.

"My friends!" Twilight cried. "They're in trouble! I need to help them!"

"No, what you need to do is stay here and recover," Kimberly said. "We'll go save your friends."

"This is still a little too weird, if you ask me," Zack whispered to Billy.

"Okay, we'll split up," Jason said, taking command. "Zack, Trini, and I will go to the construction site. Kimberly, Tommy, Billy, you go to the park. We'll save Twilight's friends and bring them back here. It's the safest place. Got it?" He was answered by a chorus of nodding heads. "Good. Let's do it." They pressed a button on their wrist communicators, and vanished in flashes of colors.

"Whoa! What happened?" Twilight asked, confused and fascinated at once.

"The Power Rangers have teleported to the locations shown on the viewing globe," Zordon answered. "Your pony friends are in good hands, Your Majesty. Trust me."

 _I wish I could,_ Twilight thought. She looked back at the viewing globe.

############################

Rarity blasted one of the gray humanoids with her magic; she wasn't as powerful as Twilight when it came to using her magic as a weapon, but she could do some damage. But these humanoid creatures – there were so many of them, and they had the three of them surrounded! Applejack had been kicking them, and Pinkie Pie had been blasting them with her Party Cannon – how she brought it with her, Rarity didn't know, but then again, this was Pinkie Pie; it was better off not questioning her.

Applejack kicked one of the humanoids in the knees, shattering them and bringing the creature to the ground.

"Y'all better back the hay off! There's a heap helpin' more where that came from, y'hear!" One of the humanoids took a swing at Applejack; she ducked down, out of the way. "Ha! Missed me!"

Pinkie Pie blasted the creature with her Party Cannon. "KA-BOOM! Eat confetti, you mean ol' meanie mean pants!"

"Hey! Putties!"

The humanoids turned to look behind them, to look at three humans – two boys and one girl – who had suddenly appeared. One boy was slightly taller and more muscular than the other one, with his thick brown hair tied back into a ponytail; he was dressed in a white t-shirt and dark blue pants. The other boy was wearing large, thick-lensed glasses on his face, and was dressed in blue; the girl was a bit shorter than both boys – by about an inch or so – with shoulder length brown hair and dressed in pink.

"Pick on someone your own size," the boy in white said.

The gray humanoids charged at them.

Tommy blocked a punch from a Putty, following up with a hard kick to its stomach. A hefty punch to the Putty's face knocked it to the ground. Another Putty shattered when Tommy struck the "Z" on its chest. One more went down with a leg sweep.

Billy ducked under a Putty's punch, countering with one to the gray humanoid's stomach area, before hitting it in the chin with a hard uppercut. He was grabbed from behind; a few elbows to the Putty's chest loosened its grip, allowing him to kick it in the chest, shattering it. A spin-kick knocked another one to the ground.

A Putty went to kick Kimberly, she grabbed its leg and flipped it, throwing it to the ground, where she slammed her fist into the "Z" on its chest, causing it to shatter. For all his egotism, it was Zedd's own vanity that created the weakness for his brand of Putties – every time the "Z" on their chest was struck, they were destroyed, shattering like glass.

One Putty grabbed her arm and flipped her over its shoulder; she rolled to her feet and kicked it square in the chest. Another one went down with a hard kick to the knee, before she planted her foot in its disfigured face.

The remaining Putties shattered like glass.

The whole thing was over in less than a minute.

Tommy wiped some sweat from his forehead. "Everyone okay?"

"Fine," Kimberly said. "These things are a joke."

"They were? They didn't seem all that funny."

The three of them turned to the pink pony – unlike Twilight, she lacked wings and a horn, and her mane and tail were messy, a dark shade of pink, and she had a marking of three party balloons on her flank. The other normal-looking horse – if it could even be called that – was dark orange with a blonde mane and tail tied into a ponytail, a tattered brown cowboy hat on her head, and a marking of three apples. And then there was the white unicorn, with the royal purple mane and tail neatly and elegantly curled, and with a marking of three sapphire blue diamonds.

Tommy put a hand over his eyes. "Great. More talking horses."

"Well, Twilight DID say that these were friends of hers," Kimberly said.

The orange pony spoke up. "Y'all know Twilight? Where is she? She's okay, ain't she? If she ain't, then Celestia help me –"

"Hey, no need to be making threats," Tommy quickly said. "She's okay. She's safe. We can, uh, we can take you to her."

"You hesitated for a second," the white unicorn said. "Is everything okay?"

"It's just been a very strange day," Billy replied.

"Preachin' the choir on that one, partner," the orange pony whispered.

"Can we go now?" Kimberly asked. "I don't feel like waiting for more Putties to show up."

"Yeah, let's get going," Tommy said. "Everyone, um….Pick a pony."

############################

Jason, Zack, and Trini teleported into the old construction site. They were expecting to find two ponies being harassed by the Putty Patrol.

They weren't expecting to see some strange, misshapen creature fighting the Putties off.

"What the hell is that?" Zack screamed.

The creature stood at least eight, maybe nine, feet tall, most of that thanks to its serpentine body. It had the head of a horse, adorned with the antlers of a stag and an antelope; its arms were comprised of a lion's paw for the left arm and an eagle's talons for the right; its left leg was a deer's hoof, the right a lizard's foot; its tail was scaly, like a snake's, and was tipped with a tuft of white fur, similar to the goat's beard hanging off of its chin; it had two different wings on its back, a bat's wing and a bird's wing; the eyes were asymmetrical, with the left eye being slightly larger and more rounded than the right eye; a single fang poked out of the corner of its mouth.

It made the two Pegasi next to it seem normal by comparison.

"I have no idea," Jason said as the creature slammed to Putties together. "But whatever it is, it looks like it's on our side."

"Well, don't just stand there like a bunch of slack-jawed idiots," the creature said, its voice smooth and smug. "Unless you actually enjoy watching poor old me smack these things around." The creature backhanded a Putty, popping its head like a grape. "Boo-yeah! Ooh, that feels good."

The blue Pegasus flew forward at an incredibly high speed, blazing past a trio of Putties, knocking them to the ground. "Yeah! How do you like that, you gray goons!"

"Okay, let's get in there and help out," Jason said. He charged forward.

A Putty swung a fist at Jason. Jason grabbed its fist and punched its elbow, shattering its arm, before slamming his fist into the gray humanoid's chest. Another one fell from a head butt. He kicked another one in the face, before stomping on the "Z" on its chest, causing it to shatter.

Trini blocked a Putty's punch, countering with a hard kick to the side of the Putty's head. Another one fell when she slammed the ball of her hand into its nose. A hard spin-kick knocked another one out; for good measure, she punched the "Z" on its chest.

Some of the other Power Rangers would describe Zack's method of fighting as…unorthodox. He liked to incorporate dance moves into his fights, a form of martial arts he had created that he called hip-hop kido. It was primarily used as a form of distraction, catching his opponents off guard before he delivered his attacks.

Which he was doing right now, moving his body and shuffling his feet, distracting a group of Putties from the punches he delivered a few seconds later. Two more fell, one from a hard punch to the chest, another from a kick to the knees, which was followed up by a kick to the face.

Jason was busy punching a Putty in the face, so much so that he never noticed another one coming up from behind him until it punched him in the back of the head. He turned, his fists raised, ready to return the punch –

The Putty melted into a puddle of ooze.

"You're welcome!" the strange creature called over to him.

"Seriously, what is that thing?" Jason asked. He shook his head. "Questions for later." He spotted a Putty going for the little yellow Pegasus. "Oh no you don't." He tapped the Putty on the shoulder. "Excuse me." A hard kick to the chest shattered the Putty. He turned to the yellow Pegasus. "You okay?" The pony didn't answer; she was too busy cowering to the ground, hiding her face behind her bright baby-pink mane. "I'll take that as a no."

"Jason!" Trini yelled. "Goldar's here!"

"What? Son of a –"

Goldar was once one of Rita's most powerful underlings, but after Zedd took over and banished Rita, Goldar began to work for Zedd. Even now, he was still a threat, one of the most powerful enemies the Power Rangers had ever faced. He was tall, towering over even Jason, who was already pretty tall himself, and resembled a large winged gorilla in golden armor and armed with a massive sword.

He leaped down from a nearby scaffolding, his sword brandished in one hand.

"Damn," Jason hissed. "Guys, we're going to have to morph."

"What about the ponies and the, the, the whatever?" Zack asked.

"We have no choice," Trini said. "We can't fight Goldar like this."

"She's right," Jason agreed. They took a silver, octagonal-shaped device out of their pockets – their Power Morphers – and held them in front of them. "It's morphing time!"

"Mastodon!"

"Saber-Toothed Tiger!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

There was a flash of light, and their normal civilian clothes were replaced with the outfits everyone associated with the Power Rangers – Jason was red, Trini was yellow, and Zack was black. Their helmets were designed to match the creatures they called out when they morphed: Jason's visor was surrounded by teeth-like notches, the top of the helmet had a groove in it that looked like a snout, and there were two black dots that resembled eyes on the sides; Trini had two silver fangs alongside her visor, and the tops of her helmet were pointed, much like a cat's ears; Zack had a similar feature, though his visor designs were reminiscent of an elephant's tusks and trunk. The outfits had three white diamonds along the front and back, the one in the middle being dominant, while the other two folded around to the meet at the back. Their white gloves and boots had a similar feature, only the diamonds were matching the colors of their Ranger outfits. Their Morphers were set into a buckle on the front of their white belts, and on the side of the belts was a holster, containing their Blade Blasters – daggers that could transform into guns if the need arose.

"Whoa! Did you see that?"

Their weapons appeared in their hands – Jason's Power Sword, Trini's Power Daggers, and Zack's Power Axe – which could transform into a rifle if he needed it to.

They charged for Goldar, who easily swatted them away. Jason leaped back to his feet and came at Goldar again, their swords crossing. Each attack met, sending out a resounding clang. One slash caught Jason in the chest; sparks flew off of his suit as he was knocked back – it was a defense mechanism built into the suits, but it didn't always work, especially if the attack was devastating enough.

"You're out of your league, Rangers," Goldar snarled. "You've never been able to beat me, and you never will. How about you just surrender and let me destroy you now?"

Jason climbed to his feet and tightened his grip on his sword. "That's not going to happen, Goldar!"

The strange creature put a hand on Jason's shoulder. "Look here, Red Boy – there are times when you gotta know when to hold 'em, and know when to fold 'em. And even I can tell you that right now, it's folding time. But not without leaving him with a little parting gift." The creature snapped its fingers. A pink, fluffy cloud that looked like it was made out of cotton candy appeared over Goldar's head and began spewing out a dark liquid – it looked like chocolate milk.

Zack turned to the creature. "Really? That's the best you've got?"

"It'll have to do," Jason said. "Grab a pony and the…whatever…and let's get back to the Command Center." They placed their hands on the sides of their buckles, and in less than a second, they were standing in the main atrium of the Command Center.

The first thing they heard was Kimberly screaming when she spotted the strange creature. "What is that thing?!"

"We've been trying to figure that out ourselves," Zack said as they demorphed.

The ponies all gathered together in one big group hug. "Twilight! You're okay!"

"I'm glad you're safe, girls," Twilight said. "I'm sorry I made you all worry."

"Think nothing of it, darling," the white unicorn said.

"So, you gonna fill us in?" the blue Pegasus asked. "Learn anything? Like who these people are? Or what's with the giant head? Come on, we want answers!"

"These people call themselves Power Rangers," Twilight explained. "I guess they're like the Power Ponies from Spike's comics." She turned to the Rangers. "Rangers, these are my friends – Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Discord."

"Hooray! I'm finally in the friend group!" Discord cheered.

"That's a bit of a stretch though, isn't it?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Look, we've got a bigger problem," Jason interjected. "Like figuring out what caused this rift. If any of you have an answer, we'd like to hear it."

"Sorry, partner," Applejack said. "We're just as clueless as the rest of ya. That's why we came here; we were lookin' for an answer."

Jason crossed his arms and lowered his head, his mind racing with so many different thoughts. "Well, I guess we'd better start looking for one."

"And we'd better do it fast," Discord said. "If I remember what my old draconequus Chaos told me, if two worlds merge like this, then they're both going to end up destroying each other."

"So it's like when two tectonic plates come together," Billy guessed. "The more they push against each other, the more damage they do."

"You got it, Glasses," Discord said. "Let's hear it for Four Eyes!"

"Wait, hold on," Twilight said as she held up a hoof. "You're saying that if our two worlds stay merged, then they'll be destroyed?"

"Yup."

For a while, no one spoke. The atmosphere was heavy. No one in the room had ever faced a situation quite like this.

"If we want our worlds to survive," Jason said, "then we'd better find a way to separate them. And fast. We don't have much time."


	6. To Equestria

TO EQUESTRIA

"IF YOU ASK ME," BILLY SAID, "I THINK ONE THING WE CAN DO IS EXPLORE THEIR world. We might be able to figure something out. Though at this point, that's just conjecture."

"I don't think so," Jason said. "At least, not yet. Don't get me wrong, Billy, it's not a bad idea, but we still don't know what we're dealing with."

"How about I help you all figure this out," Discord said. He snapped his fingers.

One minute, they were standing in the main atrium of the Command Center; the next, they were floating in the vast emptiness of space. All they could see was darkness. "Welcome to the universe, Power Rangers. The ponies have already seen this, but I think it wouldn't hurt to show you." Discord snapped his fingers again, and the darkness lit up, illuminated by hundreds – thousands – of constellations, nebulae, and galaxies. "This is the basis for every universe. There are several that make up the multiverse."

"This is beautiful," Kimberly breathed.

"Don't get used to it, Kimmy," Discord said. "I'm only doing this for exposition." He pointed to a nebula in the middle of the cosmos. "And this is the galaxy where your world resides. What's it called again? The Milky Way? That's a stupid name."

"Hey, we didn't name it," Tommy said.

"Now the thing about each universe," Discord continued, ignoring Tommy, "is that they are all very similar, and yet at the same time, different."

"I've heard of this theory," Billy said. "They call it the multiverse theory. It states that there are several different versions of the same universe, each one just takes a different path."

"Four Eyes is right," Discord said. "We've encountered several of these other universes so far, through different means – dimensional nexuses, transporters, Ground Bridges, what have you. For instance…." A wave of his hand caused the image to change to another universe, that at first looked the same. But upon closer inspection, it was different – the differences were so subtle that they were barely noticeable.

"Now this is the universe where Equestria's first visitors came from," Discord continued. A wave of his hand made the image zoom in to a blue and green planet that looked so much like Earth. "From what I gather, they call this world Gaia. Oh, the different versions of this world – that itself is a completely different story." The image changed again, this time showing a gray, metallic-looking planet. "Welcome to Cybertron, home world of the Autobots and Decepticons."

"The who and the what?" Trini asked.

"Let's just call them the Transformers," Discord replied. "We've met them twice, actually."

"You were still a statue the first time," Twilight said.

"Please don't remind me, Twilight," Discord moaned. "You have no idea what it's like not being able to stretch out a bad Charlie horse. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprised if they're still going at it. After all, they've been fighting for thousands of years. I doubt it's going to top any time soon." He changed the image again. "This little planet should look familiar."

"That's Earth," Billy said.

"But a different version of Earth," Discord said. "If I recall correctly, the people who visited Equestria from this world said that the Power Rangers had been destroyed."

"What?" Jason flatly said.

"Now I remember where I heard the term 'Power Rangers' before," Twilight said. "Isaac mentioned them."

"That was before I got blown up," Discord pointed out. "And unless you've ever been blown up, let me tell you that it hurts. A lot. Anyway, now just imagine this version of Earth, but five centuries in the past. That's where our latest visitors came from. That half-demon's got a bit of a temper, let me tell you."

"This doesn't make any sense," Kimberly said. "Are there really other versions of our world?"

"We know that there are other dimensions, so it stands to reason that there really is a multiverse," Billy answered. "I just never thought we'd ever encounter another universe."

"Join the club, Glasses," Rainbow Dash whispered.

Jason's arms were still crossed; he was still trying to process all of this information. "This doesn't answer the big question: How did our worlds merge?"

"Well, at first I thought it was natural," Discord said. "These rifts happen sometimes." He snapped his fingers; the universe he was showing collided with another one. "The rifts are rare, and sometimes, they go by unnoticed. But lately, they've been pretty frequent, though most of the time it was because of artificial means or magic." He flicked his wrist, bringing them back to the main atrium. "But the more I think about it, the less of a coincidence this seems. Someone meant for our worlds to merge. And all signs are pointing to this handsome fellow." He held out a hand, palm up, and in a puff of smoke, the image of a humanoid figure appeared. He looked like he was tall in reality, with pointed elf-like ears and dressed in a silver robe. In one hand he carried a staff, tipped with a blade that looked like a scythe. There was a noble look about him, but at the same time, he looked sinister, like he was capable of untold destruction if provoked enough. "Meet the God of Dimensions, named Kronos. I'm starting to think this guy's behind all this."

"Could it be possible that he made a deal with Lord Zedd?" Tommy asked.

"Could be," Discord said. He blew the image of Kronos away, turning it into a puff of smoke. "Honestly, even for an omnipotent being like myself, it's hard to tell what a god is thinking."

"So how do we unmerge our worlds?" Jason asked. "There has to be a way."

"I don't know what he's thinking, but I do know that there are two ways to unmerge two worlds," Discord replied.

"I assume you're going to tell us, then?" Rarity asked.

"One way is to have Kronos separate the worlds," Discord said. "And he probably would, depending on his mood. But the other way, well…." His voice trailed off.

"What's the other way?" Trini asked.

"Kronos would have to die. And besides the fact that it's a little hard to kill a god, whatever world Kronos is killed in, that's where everyone would stay. So if the Power Rangers killed him in Equestria, they'd be stuck there, and vice versa. And even my magic wouldn't be able to send them back home."

Everyone was stunned silent. Thirteen sets of eyes and one robotic visor all focused on Discord. The only sound was Alpha silently whispering "Ay yi yi."

"Yeah, this is some heavy stuff we're dealing with," Discord said.

"So let me see if I've got this straight," Zack said. "We can either ask this Kronos fellow to fix things, or we can destroy him, but if we destroy him, we'll be stuck on one side of the rift."

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Discord replied. "So I guess we've got a choice to make."

"We can't just go ahead and pick one," Twilight pointed out. "We have to think really hard about this."

"I vote for whichever choice isn't violent," Fluttershy said, her voice no more than a tiny squeak. "You know, if you don't mind."

"I'd rather not have to fight either," Jason said. He turned to the other Power Rangers and ponies in the room. "I say we take a vote on it. I'm pretty sure I know what the outcome's going to be, but I want to hear what everyone has to say."

"I say we find the motherbucker and make him fix this," Rainbow Dash said. "If he doesn't, I've got a good Sonic Rainboom lined up for him."

"Rainbow Dash, really!" Rarity cried. "I say we sit down and have a civilized discussion with this fellow. I'm sure we can make him understand that we'd rather not have our worlds destroyed."

"That's a good idea, Rarity," Kimberly agreed. "But remember – Kronos is a god. Aren't gods supposed to be really egotistical? I don't think he'd listen."

"He will if we make him!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"Cool your jets there, Dash," Applejack said. "I think talkin' things out with this guy would be a might good idea."

"Yeah," Tommy agreed, nodding his head. "I don't think we want to go making this guy angry. It's bad enough that he might have made a deal with Zedd; that's enough to get anyone riled up."

"So four for talking, one for fighting," Jason said. "Anyone else care to throw in their two cents?"

"Two scents?" Pinkie Pie repeated. "How can you have two scents? I thought everything only had one scent. It would be weird if I suddenly started smelling two things off of everyone."

"I mean, who else has an opinion, Pinkie," Jason said. "I wasn't talking about smells."

"Oh. Well, in that case, I've got lots of opinions, like why cakes taste so good, or why Gummy is so funny! You want to hear some more opinions?"

"I think he'd rather hear your opinion on our current situation," Twilight said.

"Oh. It stinks. How's that?"

"What do you think we should do about Kronos?" Jason asked.

"I have no idea."

"Mind like a steel trap, that one," Zack whispered to Trini.

"She is a weird one," Trini agreed. "I don't think fighting's going to solve this one so easily," she said. "I think that if we sit down and talk this out, we can come to some sort of understanding. We can get Kronos to see that what he's doing is wrong."

"He's not going to listen," Rainbow Dash said in singsong.

"You sound so sure," Twilight said. "Violence isn't the answer, Rainbow Dash. I mean, sure, we've had to do our fair share of fighting in the past, but this is a GOD we're talking about here. We wouldn't have a chance if we went hoof-to-hoof with him. That's why I think we should discuss this with him."

"Same here," Zack said. "Besides, I don't want to end up on this guy's bad side."

"I agree," Jason said. "Discord? How about you?"

"If my powers were strong enough, I'd just undo this rift myself," Discord replied. "But maybe I can persuade Kronos to do it for us."

"So, so far everyone but Rainbow Dash is for talking things out," Jason said. He turned to Billy. "Still waiting for your vote, Billy."

Billy's face was turned towards the floor. He slowly looked up at Jason, his eyes gleaming, the way they always did when Billy was excited about something. Jason could only imagine what it was.

"Jason, we're merged with another world. This changes everything we think we know about the multiverse theory!"

"I don't think it does, really," Jason replied.

"Jason, before, the multiverse theory was just that – theory," Billy said. "But now we have the chance to actually visit one of these other worlds. All we have to do is step over the rift and we're there. The machine that I used to pull you out of the Dark Dimension – I can reconfigure it to allow us to travel to other worlds in the multiverse. There might be a world where dinosaurs and humans live side by side. There might be a world where computers run everything and humans live through a robotic surrogate. There might be a world where humans never evolved. The possibilities are endless, and I think this might be the first step in making that dream come true."

Jason crossed his arms. "It's too dangerous. We don't know what's on the other side."

"It might just be more ponies," Billy said. "We'll never know unless we go over there."

Jason shook his head. "I still don't want anyone to go over there. Twilight and her friends might be from that world, but that's just a small part of it. There's a huge world over there, and who knows what sort of dangers are waiting for us."

"That's mostly restricted to the Everfree Forest," Twilight said. "Manticores, chimeras, hydras, dragons, timber wolves, crocodiles, ursa majors, quicksand, poisonous and flesh-eating plants, cyclopes, ogres, trolls, satyrs, fauns, gorgons, parasprites, really, I can go on."

"My point exactly," Jason said. "Those things sound pretty dangerous."

"Jason, I believe that Billy may be right," Zordon said. "Exploring our visitors' world might give us some insight about it and help us find a way to close the rift, if one exists on the other side."

"I don't know, Zordon. I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Jason, I made you the leader of the Power Rangers because I trusted you to make the right decisions for the team," Zordon said.

"I know, Zordon. And I am making the right decision." He turned to Billy. "It's not that I don't agree with you, Billy. I kind of want to see what's over there, too. But no one is going over there."

"Y'all will be fine, so long's ya stay in Ponyville," Applejack said.

Jason shook his head again. "I still think it's too dangerous."

"This world is dangerous to us, and we still came over," Rarity said. "If we can survive in this world, I'm sure you can survive in our world."

"One of you nearly died already," Jason said as he turned to her. "Twilight wouldn't be alive if we hadn't found her, and even then, that was by pure chance." He took a deep breath. "Okay, look. If you really want to go over the rift, Billy, then at least take someone with you. I don't want anyone going over the rift alone."

"I'll go with him," Tommy spoke up. "Who knows – it might be fun."

"Just be careful," Jason cautioned. "And stay away from any forests. You heard what Twilight said about the dangers in there."

"We'll be fine," Billy said. "Trust me."

###############################

"I'm kind of having second thoughts about this."

Billy and Tommy were standing right at the edge of the rift; all they had to do was take one step, and they'd be in the other world – one step, and they would be in Equestria. That was all it would take, and now Billy was starting to chicken out?

"Did you forget whose idea this was?" Tommy asked. He put a hand around Billy's shoulder. "Come on. I'll be right there with you."

They walked forward, over the rift, and into Equestria.

The first thing they noticed was the slight chill in the air; it must have just turned springtime. The leaves were fresh and green; there was fresh dew on the grass; the dirt roads were still hard from the chill; the sky was clear, with few clouds and a bright sun shining down on the land.

And then there were the inhabitants. Just as they had guessed, there were ponies all over the place – young, old, male, female, some on the ground, some flying through the sky, some normal-looking ponies – Earth ponies, Applejack had referred to them as – some unicorns, some Pegasi, all various colors. They seemed oblivious to the two humans, but then again, Twilight and the others had said that they'd seen plenty of humans before, so it wasn't farfetched to think that the ponies would ignore them.

"Jason told us not to be here for more than an hour and a half at the most," Tommy said. "So let's just try not to leave the village. Okay?"

"Okay," Billy agreed. "We meet back at the rift, then?"

"Right back here."

They walked off in separate directions.

################################

Billy was so amazed. He felt like he was walking through Times Square for the first time – everything was so new to him! It was unlike anything he had ever seen before. So quiet, so quaint, so peaceful and innocent, it was almost like a child's dream come true.

 _Well, the dream of a little girl come true, anyway._

One of the things that really struck him was just how practical everything was. There were no large construction vehicles; everything looked like it had been done by hand – by hoof, in this case, if that were even possible. But then again, this was a world dominated mainly by ponies, so something like a hoofed creature building a house wasn't out of the realm of possibility here. After all, where had all these structures come from, if not construction crews?

He couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. "I think I might be able to make this work," he said out loud to no one in particular. "All I have to do is recalibrate my machine and we'll be able to travel from one world to the next. It would be the scientific breakthrough of the century – no, the history of man!"

He stopped himself from cheering. "Wait. That would also mean breaking all the laws of physics. It would mean shattering our preconceived notions of reality. The universe as we know it – it would be completely changed. Oh boy, this is a tough decision."

"You want to know what's a tough decision?"

Billy turned to the source of the voice, a small purple and green lizard, who stood on two legs, standing just above Billy's knees, with purple scales for his head, back, legs, and arms, green scales for his belly, and a row of green spines along his back. He was carrying a paper bag filled with gems.

"Deciding on if you should put rubies or crystals in your pie." He pulled out a handful of small crystals and shoved them into his mouth. "You okay? You're staring at me."

"Sorry," Billy said. He knelt down to speak to the lizard at eye level. "I was just expecting this place to be filled with ponies and horses, not talking lizards."

"I'm not a lizard, I'm a dragon! My name's Spike. What's yours?"

"It's Billy. Billy Cranston."

"You came from across the rift, didn't you?" Spike asked, his mouth full of gems. "Is everyone okay? What are Twilight and the others up to?"

"Hold on, you know Twilight Sparkle and her friends?"

"I sure hope so. You're looking at Twilight's Number One Assistant." He took another bite of his gems. "So, what brings you to Equestria?"

"Just exploring," Billy replied as he started walking down the road again. "Though I've been told to not leave the village."

"That would be a good idea," Spike said with a nod. "You don't want to go into the Everfree Forest."

Billy turned to look at the forest; he could see the trees just beyond the village. Even from here, he could feel a sense of foreboding coming from it. The trees blocked his view, the foliage so thick he could barely see a few meters past the tree line. And the canopy was blocking out any light that may have filtered into it. Looking at it, he was reminded of a forest he had seen in a dream.

Or a nightmare.

Yet at the same time, there was something that drew him towards it; he ignored the feeling, though it was still there. He knew that it was a dangerous place, yet at the same time, he wanted to explore, whenever he got the chance.

"Trust me," Spike said, snapping Billy out of his stupor. "You're better off not going in there."

"I've heard about those monsters."

They kept walking, Billy taking in the sights. Every pony he saw barely seemed to notice him; a few gave him a recognizing glance, a nod here and there, and he got a wave from a green unicorn with a mint-green mane.

The crisp air made Billy wish he had worn a jacket, or at least a sweater. He was starting to shiver, the hairs on his arms were starting to stand on end, and he could feel goose bumps on his skin. He folded his arms against his body, trying to keep them warm. He was used to spring weather being in the upper-sixties, lower-seventies at the most. To him, this was winter weather; way too cold for what he was used to.

"You okay?" Spike asked.

"A little cold," Billy admitted. "I'm not used to this kind of weather."

"What kind of weather are you used to?"

"A lot warmer than this."

 _Beep beep beep-beep beep-beep._

"What was that?" Spike asked.

"That was me. Give me a minute."

Billy turned away and pressed a button on his communicator, surprised that he could get a signal in this place. "Go for Billy."

"Billy, it's Tommy! I'm down by some schoolhouse, and I could use some help! There's Putties here!"

"Putties? Here? But how?"

"They must have followed us," Tommy guessed. "Look, I don't have time – I'm trying to protect a bunch of little horses here and these Putties aren't exactly cooperating with me, so get your ass over to the schoolhouse, NOW!"

"I heard something going on at the schoolhouse," Spike said. "What's wrong?"

"I have no idea," Billy lied. "But I have to get there. Where is it?"

"Just follow me."

They hurried down the street, Spike waddling as fast as he could, Billy trying not to overtake the little dragon. The schoolhouse was just half a mile down the street; a tall, red building that looked to Billy like an old church, complete with the steeple and belfry. He saw a playground, with a jungle gym, swing set, slide, see-saws, a sand box, a merry-go-round, and a tetherball pole.

He also saw Tommy fighting off a squad of Putties; he wrapped the tetherball string around one Putty's neck, before kicking another one in the chest, shattering it. Another Putty was thrown onto the merry-go-round, smacking its head against the steel bars, knocking it unconscious.

A Putty grabbed Tommy from behind, putting its arm around his neck, trying to strangle him. Tommy hit the Putty in the face with the back of his head, making it lose his grip. He turned, kicking it in the head.

Billy ran down the hill to meet up with Tommy, clotheslining a Putty as he went. "I got here as fast as I could, Tommy!"

"What took you so long? I'm getting my butt kicked."

"Sorry; I didn't want to lose my escort." He hit a Putty in the chest, shattering it. "Spike! Can you keep an eye on the foals in the schoolhouse? Me and Tommy will handle the Putties!" He kicked a Putty in the knee, making it lose his balance, allowing him to knee it in the face.

Tommy climbed between the steel bars of the jungle gym; the Putty that followed smacked its head against the bars.

Spike ran as fast as he could, dodging the Putties that lunged at him, as he made his way to the door. The schoolteacher, Miss Cherilee, had the door open a little bit, allowing her to peek outside.

"Don't come outside!" Spike yelled. He threw the door open, slamming it shut once he was on the other side. "I don't think you want to see that."

"Thothe humanth are beating up thothe gray guyth," Peppermint Twist said. "Who should we root for?"

"I'd say the humans," Spike answered. He joined the foals at the window, watching the fight outside. "From what I can tell, those gray guys aren't exactly friendly."

They all winced as one of the gray humanoids had its neck snapped.

"You shouldn't be watching this, kids," Cherilee said. She closed the curtains. "It looks a little too violent for children."

"But Miss Cherilee, it's so cool!" Scootaloo whined. "And come on, this is nothing. We've been face to face with all sorts of monsters and such. We can handle watching a little fight."

"Sorry, Scootaloo, but no means no." She ignored the collective groan that rose in the room.

Back outside, Billy dodged a swing from a Putty, blocked another punch, and countered with a hard elbow to the Putty's face. A swift kick knocked it down. Another Putty got in a lucky hit, its fist connecting with the side of his face, catching him off guard. He regained his balance and, after dodging a kick, punched the Putty in the chest, shattering it.

A Putty lunged at Tommy; he leaped back, out of the way. The Putty lunged at Tommy again. He grabbed the tetherball and threw it as hard as he could at the Putty; it shattered when the ball struck its chest.

Two more ganged up on him. For a moment, he considered morphing, but decided against it; the Putties had become a joke, easily defeated with very little effort. It was in stark contrast to when they first encountered Zedd's variation of the Putty Patrol, but once they found the weakness, they became even easier to defeat than the Putties Rita had been using. Tommy liked to think of it as a metaphor for Zedd's ego coming back to bite him.

Tommy jumped up, kicking both Putties in the chest. Another one leaped down at him from the slide, toppling him to the ground.

"Get off of me, damn it! Billy! Could use some help!"

Billy had his arms up over his face, blocking an onslaught of punches from a Putty. "I'm a little busy right now, Tommy!"

"Then get un-busy!" Tommy yelled. He struggled to hold the Putty back. "I can't hold this guy for long!"

The foals had moved the curtain aside to let them see the fight. They all held their breath, watching as the two humans struggled with the few gray creatures that were left. One of the creatures has one of the humans pinned to the ground; the other human was helpless as a creature charged and attacked, never letting up.

 _I can't just watch this,_ Spike thought. He ran for the door.

"Spike, where are you going?" Sweetie Belle called after him.

Spike didn't answer; he threw the door open and ran outside as fast as he could, heading for the closest human – Tommy. As he ran, he took a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds until he was close enough.

His fire breath wasn't as powerful as a full-grown dragon's but it was still enough to burn the gray humanoid. It leaped off of Tommy, trying to put out the fire that had started on its body, allowing Tommy to leap to his feet and deliver a hard kick to the Putty's chest, shattering it.

"Thanks, little guy," Tommy said. "Come on; we've got to help Billy." He ran over to the Putty that was attacking Billy and delivered a hard punch to the back of its head, while Spike torched its legs. Billy's fist slammed into the Putty's chest, shattering it. "You okay, Billy?" Tommy panted.

Billy collapsed to the ground, leaning back on his hands. His breathing was labored; he took long, deep breaths. "Yeah, just….Just give me a minute."

"Are you two okay?"

Spike turned to see the schoolfoals had come outside to join them. "We saw that whole thing!" Scootaloo cried. "That was so cool!"

Tommy shook his head. "No, it wasn't. Those Putties shouldn't have been here. Billy, either they followed us or Lord Zedd sent them after us. Either way, I think we'd better get back and let everyone else know."

"Yeah," Billy agreed. Tommy helped him climb to his feet. "Seems like things are worse than we thought."

"What are you talking about?" Spike asked.

"It's a long story, Spike," Billy replied. "We've got to get back to our world."

"Can I come with you?" Spike asked. "I want to know if my friends are okay?"

"Billy, who is this little lizard?" Tommy asked Billy.

"His name's Spike. He's a friend of Twilight Sparkle's. And the other ponies too, I think."

"I am. Can I come with you? Please?" Spike asked again, looking up at them with big puppy-dog like eyes.

"I don't know," Tommy said. "Maybe it would be better if you didn't."

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo stepped forward. "Yeah, well, we're going whether you say we can or not," Scootaloo said proudly. The three fillies had been filled with a lot of pride and had been much more confident in themselves, ever since they finally earned their Cutie Marks. At first glance, their Cutie Marks looked identical – three purple and white shields – but upon closer inspection, each one had its own design. Scootaloo's shield had the design of a wing inside it; Apple Bloom's had a heart inside of an apple; Sweetie Belle's had a music note inside of a star. They deserved to be proud and confident; the three fillies had worked their little tails off to earn those Cutie Marks.

"Forget it, girls," Cherilee said. "It's way too dangerous."

"We'll be with them," Apple Bloom protested. " 'sides, Miss Cherilee, we've been to another world before. Over the summer, remember? It ain't gonna be that bad."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sweetie Belle cried, her voice cracking with excitement.

Tommy sighed. He turned to Billy. "Wonderful," he whispered. "We're going to be stuck babysitting a little fire breathing lizard and three little pony kids."

"Actually, Spike's a dragon," Billy corrected him. "And I believe the correct term is fillies."

Tommy smiled. "Shut up," he chuckled


	7. Corruption

CORRUPTION

THEY HAD JUST CROSSED THE RIFT BACK INTO ANGEL GROVE WHEN THEY NOTICED the change. When Billy and Tommy had left, it was the middle of the day; now it was night. But how could that be? It was just past noon when they crossed the rift; they had only been gone for less than two hours. Could it be that they had been gone longer? How had night fallen so quickly?

"Billy, what's going on?" Tommy asked.

"I'm not really sure," Billy answered. He stomped his foot on the ground in frustration. "Shoot, that's right!"  
"What is?" Spike asked.

"The time differential between dimensions – I didn't take that into account!"

Their wrist communicators beeped. "Hey, that's a catchy tune," Sweetie Belle said.

Tommy pressed a button on the communicator's face. "Go for Tommy."

"Tommy, Billy, where have you guys been?" Jason asked. He sounded worried. "We've been trying to get a hold of you for hours."

"But we've only been gone for, I don't know, maybe two hours."

"Guys, you left twelve hours ago."

Billy spoke into the communicator. "I'll explain when we get there. And guys – we've got some more company from that world." Tommy turned the communicator off. "We've got to get back."

"Well, then." Tommy turned to their smaller companions. "You four might want to stay close." Spike and the fillies huddled close to them, Spike grabbing the legs of Tommy's jeans with his claws, the fillies wrapping their tiny legs around them. "Okay. Hold on." He and Billy pressed a button, and in a second, they were standing once more in the Command Center's central atrium.

"You brought more of them?" Jason asked.

"Didn't you hear us when we said we've got more company?" Tommy asked in return. "They sort of followed us."

Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash all stepped forward. "Spike/Apple Bloom/Sweetie Belle/Scootaloo! What are you doing here?"

"We came because we were worried about you," Spike answered. "After what happened when we went to visit the Autobots, well…." He turned to look at the fillies, who had run off to explore.

"Hey! Look at this!"

"There's a lot of buttons! Gizmos! Whozits! Gizmos! Doo-dads!"

"What do they all do?"

Alpha was chasing after them, trying to catch them. "No! Stop! Don't touch that! It's very delicate! Ai yi yi yi yi yi!"

Zordon watched the scene unfold; he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Okay, fillies, settle down," Twilight called. ""This isn't the time or place to play."

The fillies stopped running and turned to face Alpha. "So who's the robot?" Apple Bloom asked.

"He doesn't look like a Transformer," Scootaloo said.

"I'm more worried about the big head," Sweetie Belle said as she pointed a hoof towards Zordon. "Are you okay? Do you need help getting out of there?"

"I am fine," Zordon replied. "How are you?"

The three fillies turned to Kimberly and Trini. "How'd he get stuck in the tube?"

Kimberly leaned over to Trini. "They are SO CUTE!"

"They did not answer our question," Scootaloo said.

"MY LITTLE PONIES!" Twilight called. "Look, you don't know what we're dealing with here! This is dangerous! Our world and this world are in serious danger!"

"What kind of danger?" Spike asked.

"Maybe we can help," Apple Bloom suggested.

"Not going to happen," Twilight said. "We already came close to losing one of you the last time we went to another world. We're not going to let that happen again. When the sun comes up, you four are going home." There was a collective groan as Spike and the three fillies protested. "Look, I know that you want to help, but you can do that better by staying safe at home."

"It's not fair," Sweetie Belle moaned, her voice cracking. "You guys almost always get to go on these great adventures, while we're stuck home with the foal sitter! We're big ponies now, not babies! We don't need somepony watching over us all the time!"  
"Yeah, Applejack," Apple Bloom put in. "I thought you would have figured that out by now!"

"Deliverin' pies through the fire swamp is one thing, Apple Bloom," Applejack said. "What we're dealin' with here are forces that could destroy our world altogether! Don't y'all get it?"

"Applejack," Zordon said. "Perhaps it would be a good idea if they stayed here with us."

"Yeah, listen to the big head," Scootaloo said. "Whatever you guys are dealing with, we can deal with it too."

"You sure about that, pipsqueak?" Discord asked. "You ever deal with a god that could create or destroy entire worlds if he felt like it?" No one replied. "I didn't think so."

"But isn't there anything we can do to help?" Spike asked.

"If you don't want to go home, then you can stay here with Zordon and Alpha," Rarity replied. "This place is safe. They told us so."

"Can we talk about something else real quick?" Scootaloo asked. She turned to Billy and Tommy. "You two – where did you learn those awesome moves?"

"And can you teach me?" Apple Bloom added. "Rainbow Dash says I'm pretty close to getting my yellow belt in horse fu. Maybe a few more pointers can help?"

"Whoa, whoa, hold on," Jason said. He turned to Tommy and Billy. "First, tell us what happened."

"Either the Putties followed us or Zedd sent them after us," Tommy guessed. "They attacked me at the school and Billy and…Spike…came to help. And that's where we met these three." He pointed to the fillies, whom Kimberly and Trini were now holding and cuddling. "Uh, girls?"

Kimberly and Trini weren't listening; they were too busy snuggling against the fillies, cooing and speaking in baby-talk.

"Awwww! You're so cute!"

"I want to take one home with me."

Scootaloo pushed Trini away. "Stop cuddling us!"

"Girls, let the ponies breathe," Jason said. Kimberly and Trini let the ponies back down onto the floor. "I'm sure they appreciate it."

"You have no idea," Sweetie Belle breathed. "Why do human girls always want to cuddle us? We're not pony plushies."

"Anyway," Apple Bloom said, quickly trying to change the subject. "What were you saying about your super cool moves?"

"Years of practice," Billy said. "And a little bit of help from our friends."

"Besides," Zack added, "it kind of comes with the job."

"What job? Professional tail kickers?" Scootaloo asked.

"I guess you've never heard of the Power Rangers," Trini guessed.

"Power Rangers?" Spike repeated. "Sounds like the Power Ponies. Wait, did we get pulled into my comic book again?"

"No, Spike," Twilight said. "The Power Rangers _are_ superheroes, yes, but not like the Power Ponies."

"Several months ago," Zordon said, "an evil witch named Rita Repulsa was accidentally freed from her prison on the planet Nemesis, where I had sealed her away ten thousand years ago. She set her sights on Earth and began to attack it. I had no choice but to recruit five teenagers with attitude to combat her. Jason, Trini, Zack, Kimberly, and Billy were chosen to become the Power Rangers. Some time later, Tommy joined the team after the Rangers freed him from Rita's evil spell. And now a new evil has risen – Lord Zedd, Rita's superior in the United Alliance of Evil. He banished Rita and forced us to create a new power to combat him, a power I granted to Tommy. The Putty Patrollers you saw were Zedd's foot soldiers, and every so often, Zedd will send out a monster and make it grow to a very large size. But the Power Rangers have weapons to combat these large monsters – assault vehicles known as Zords. Taking power from the ancient beasts known as dinosaurs, the Power Rangers can summon the mighty Thunderzords to form the Thunder Megazord to do battle with Zedd's forces."

"Wow," Spike and the fillies breathed. "That sounds AWESOME!"

The alarms began to blare. Red and yellow lights filled the room. The six humans hurried to the viewing globe in the back of the room, Spike, the ponies, and Alpha following them.

"Hey, a crystal ball! Does it grant wishes?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I wish to be a great pop star like Sapphire Shores!"

"I don't think it's that kind of crystal ball, Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom said.

They watched as an image appeared on the viewing globe. Lord Zedd was standing atop a tall skyscraper, his metallic exoskeleton gleaming in the sunlight. Another being was with him, a tall being with pointed elf-like ears and dressed in a silver robe and carrying a scythe-tipped staff in one hand. They were watching as a squad of Putties, led by Goldar, ran through the streets, terrorizing random people.

"Lord Zedd," Jason hissed. "Who's the other guy?"

"That would be Kronos," Discord replied. "Hey, what's say we go tell him to stop messing up our worlds?"

"What can we do?" Scootaloo asked.

"The four of you can stay here with Zordon and Alpha," Jason said. "We'll take care of this."

"Ohhhhhhhh."

"Don't you worry none, young'uns," Applejack said. "We'll be comin' back in one piece."

"And with an awesome victory!" Rainbow Dash added. "So what the hoof are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

Jason, Trini, Billy, Kimberly, Zack, and Tommy reached into their pockets and pulled out their Power Morphers – six silver octagonal-shaped devices, each one studded with a gold coin in the center.

"Ready?" Jason asked. They held the Morphers out in front of them. "It's morphing time!"

"Tiger Zord!"

"Mastodon!"

"Pterodactyl!"

"Triceratops!"

"Saber-Toothed Tiger!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

Spike and the fillies just caught a brief glimpse of their costumes – a different colored jumpsuit for each of them; red for Jason, yellow for Trini, blue for Billy, pink for Kimberly, black for Zack, and white for Tommy. Their helmets resembled animal heads, and their chests were adorned with three diamonds, one in the center, and two that wrapped around to the back – except for Tommy, whose chest was adorned with a black, gold, and brown shield.

That was all they could see before they disappeared in a flash.

"Whoa! What happened?" Spike cried in shock.

"They've gone off to battle," Zordon replied. "Good luck, Rangers. Good luck, ponies. May the Power protect you."

####################################

It was total chaos. People running this way and that, Putties chasing after them, Goldar slashed a car in half. Screams of terror and car alarms were the only sounds to be heard. Police cars sped down the road, their sirens blaring; firemen hurried to put out any fires that had started up; medics wheeled the injured onto ambulances.

They looked to the top of the skyscraper, where Zedd and Kronos were standing. From here, they looked like little specks, barely visible at this vantage point.

"Zedd!"

"Kronos!"

Jason and Discord screamed at the top of their lungs, getting their enemies' attention. Zedd and Kronos leaped down from the roof, landing gracefully on the ground nearby.

"Well, if it isn't the Pathetic Retches," Zedd hissed. "And your pet ponies." He set his sights on Discord. "What is that?"

"I'm the Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony," Discord said. "And I'm the one who's going to be sending you crying home to your mommy. Like a little bitch."

"I would love to see you try, you twisted mutant freak," Zedd fumed. "Of course, that's only if Kronos here leaves anything left of you. Feel free to destroy them at your discretion, Kronos."

"Let's get one thing straight, Zedd," Kronos said as he turned to face Zedd. "I have offered you my services as an ally, not an underling." He grabbed Zedd by the top of the head, digging his fingers into Zedd's exposed brain. "I have offered to work WITH you, not FOR you!" He threw Zedd aside. "Is that understood?"

"Wow. You're not very nice, are you?" Pinkie Pie asked.

Kronos turned to face them. The Rangers got ready to fight, raising their fists. Discord pounded his lion paw into the palm of his eagle talons. The ponies scraped at the ground, Twilight's and Rarity's horns glowing.

Kronos chuckled – a friendly, almost playful chuckle. "There is something you must understand," he said. "What I do, I don't do out of malicious intent. I'm sure that it may SEEM malevolent, but I assure you, it really isn't. It is merely what I do when I feel the need presents itself."

"So you feel the need to possibly destroy our worlds?" Twilight asked.

"Angel Grove – the dimension the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers call home – is only in the mix because I felt like aiding Lord Zedd with his problems. You could say that I'm doing this to stave off boredom. However, when it comes to Equestria…." His voice trailed off. "That world has become a thorn in my side as of late. It has violated numerous dimensional laws, willingly or not."

"What the buck are you talking about?" Rainbow Dash snapped.

"For eighteen Equestrian months," Kronos said, "I have watched as your world crossed with others through various means – artificial dimensional gateways, Ground Bridges, magic, a natural nexus. I can ignore one of these incidents, as isolated incidents such as that happen all the time. I can ignore a nexus, so long as it occurs naturally, as most tend to do. However, many times your world has met others through the artificial means I described. Each dimension is meant to be separate; crossings are only meant to occur naturally when two dimensions come into contact with each other while drifting through the void. That is the law of the multiverse, the law that I myself had written at the very beginning of time. You, Equestria, whether you know it or not, whether it was intentional or not, you have violated this law, and you must be punished."

"Whine, whine, whine," Applejack growled. "That's all I'm hearin' outta ya. We made some new friends, and you don't take kindly to that, I see. Well, too bad, pardner. You may call yourself a 'god of dimensions', but there ain't no way y'all are gonna be takin' away the friendships we've made!"

"Ah, yes, I know all about the mantra from your world," Kronos said. "Friendship is magic. I fail to see how."

"You want proof?" Discord asked. "Take a look at me. What was it Peppermint Twist once said? I used to be a real jerk before I found the magic of friendship. Of course, that was after I got blown up. It stings just thinking about it."

Kronos took a moment to look Discord over. "Havoc? How did you escape that asteroid?"

"Oh, you must be getting me confused with my jerk of a brother," Discord said. "I am Discord, and I've got some chaos lined up for you, pal." He snapped his fingers.

The ground beneath Kronos opened up, pulling him in. A stream of molten lava flowed over him; it quickly hardened into sediment.

"Wow. Remind me never to make you angry," Zack said.

"An angry Discord is not a fun Discord," Discord replied.

Pinkie Pie looked into the hole. "Wow. Maud would be impressed at how quickly you – YAAAAAAAH!"

She jumped back, hiding behind Trini as Kronos used his staff to slice his way out of the rock. He climbed out of the hole, pieces of rock and dried lava dropping from his body.

"You…have made me very, very angry. It is not wise to anger a god."

The Power Rangers stepped forward, their weapons ready – Jason's sword; Trini's daggers; Billy's lance; Kimberly's bow and arrow; Zack's battle axe; Tommy's short sword. They charged for Kronos. Kronos easily batted them away, one swing of his staff knocking them back; the blade of his scythe sliced into them, causing their suits to spark and explode.

"You think you can challenge me? You are mere children. The time you have been around is barely the blink of an eye to me. I have seen the dawn of time, the birth and death of multiple worlds, been involved in the creation and destruction of several dimensions! I am a god, and you are no more than children, infants who have yet to learn how to walk."

Jason climbed to his feet and tightened his grip on his sword. "You are no god to me."

"Oh? I'm not?"

"As far as I'm concerned," Jason growled, "there's only one God. And the last time I checked, he wasn't a total asshole."

"You mean THAT god your people praise and worship? Too much of a pushover if you ask me. At least, he is any more. He wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty back when your race was still young."

Jason lunged at him. Kronos grabbed the blade of Jason's sword, stopping him. He pulled the sword out of Jason's hands. Jason, in return, punched and kicked Kronos as hard as he could, forcing him back.

"You are skilled," Kronos said. "You show great promise."

"Oh, shut up!" Jason slammed his fist into Kronos's face. "Just close that rift, leave our worlds alone, and GET OFF OUR PLANET!"

Kronos gently pushed Jason's fist away from his face. "Tell you what, my boy – I have a proposition for you. Come with me." He snapped his fingers, and they were gone.

"What the – what happened? Where'd they go?" Rainbow Dash cried.

They all turned to Zedd as he finally stood up – that throw from Kronos had knocked him out. "Well, it appears that Kronos wants to spend some alone time with the Red Ranger. I guess that leaves the rest of you for Goldar."

"Who?" Discord asked. "YOW!" He looked down, saw the tip of a sword sticking out of his gut. "Well look at that, I've been stabbed."

Rarity used her magic to grab Goldar and throw him aside. Discord took the sword out of his gut, the wound healing instantly, and he lunged for Zedd. The two toppled into each other, rolling and tumbling on the ground. The tip of Zedd's staff just missed Discord; Discord's claws sliced into Zedd's visor.

Zedd threw Discord off of him. Discord quickly righted himself and, with a snap of his fingers, glued Zedd to the ground, his boots melting into the concrete.

"Free me, you monstrosity!"

"Ah ah ah, you didn't say the magic word."

"Free me or DIE!"

"Sorry. That's not what I'm looking for." He clenched a fist and blew into his thumb, blowing his fist up like a balloon until it was the size of a beach ball; he slammed his fist into Zedd, ripping him from the concrete and sending him high into the air. He leaped up after Zedd, grabbed him, and threw him to the ground as hard as he could; the shockwave of Zedd's impact tore up the concrete, the ripples and waves flipping cars over and throwing the Power Rangers and the ponies off balance.

Zedd picked himself up off the ground, using his staff for support. His body was glowing red with fury. "NO! IMPOSSIBLE! THIS FREAK IS MAKING ME LOOK BAD!"

"Oh, you don't need my help to make you look bad," Discord said in a mocking tone. "You do a perfectly fine job of that yourself." He held up his hand, blocking Zedd's lightning attack. "Wow. You are pathetic. You look cool, but you suck at your job."

"BE SILENT!" Zedd screamed. He increased the amount of lightning he was shooting at Discord. "I'LL NOT HAVE SOME MUTANT FREAK MOCKING ME! I AM LORD ZEDD, EMPEROR OF ALL I SEE!"

"Do me a favor," Discord huffed. He snapped his fingers, deactivating Zedd's lightning and zipping Zedd's mouth shut. "Zip it." He looked over Zedd's shoulder. "How's it going with Goldilocks over there?"

"This guy is tough," Rainbow Dash said. "He keeps knocking the Power Rangers back."

"And it's like my magic isn't working on him," Twilight added.

"Nor is mine," Rarity put in.

"Your weapons and powers are useless against me," Goldar growled. "Just give up and resign yourselves to destruction!"

Discord patted him on the shoulder, getting his attention. "Not today, Monkey Man." A hard uppercut to his chin sent him flying high into the sky, so high up that they lost sight of him. "Huh. Wonder when he's going to land? Oh well. Hey Zedd! Ready to join him? All expense paid flight to Ouch Town!" Zedd glared at him before disappearing in a flash of light. "Come on, the beating was free!"

Fluttershy – who had lowered herself down to the ground – peeked out from between her pink bangs. "Are they gone?" she asked, her voice no more than a tiny squeak.

"Yeah, but I don't think we've seen the last of them," Twilight answered. "And what about Jason?"

"Let's get back to the Command Center," Tommy said. "Zordon and Alpha will know what to do."

############################

Jason had no idea where he was. At first, it looked like the Dark Dimension, where he had fought Goldar when Tommy was the Green Ranger and still under Rita's evil influence. But as he regained consciousness, he realized that he wasn't in any recognizable room from the Dark Dimension. It was like he was standing on nothing, with the void, the vastness of space extending out all around him. What was this, some kind of simulation? Something ripped right out of Star Trek?

He tried to walk, but his legs wouldn't move. He tried to move his arms, but it was like they were being weighted down. It was as though something were holding him. He looked; he was being held in some kind of silver and black cocoon; his arms and legs pinned, unable to move, no matter how hard he tried.

And standing in front of him, just a few yards away, was Kronos.

"You son of a – let me out of here! If you don't, I swear, the other Power Rangers are going to make you regret it!"

"There's no denying that their loyalty to you, to each other, is second to none," Kronos said. "I've watched you for a long time. I admire your spirits and your determination. It's no wonder Zordon chose the five of you. Let's face it, you all are just too perfect. Anyone else your age would have quit on day one. But not you. Even when everyone else wanted to walk away, you jumped at the call, didn't you, Jason? But tell me – what do you have to fight for, Red Ranger?"  
"My home. My planet."

"Is that it? No loved one you wish to protect? You do not feel a sense of guilt for failing anyone in the past?" Jason just stared at him, though it was hard for Kronos to tell, since Jason was still wearing his helmet. A quick wave of his hand, and the helmet fell off, revealing Jason's face, twisted in rage. "I'm going to take your angry look as a no." He clasped his hands together and began pacing back and forth. "Now, on to business."

"Which involves letting me go! And when I DO get free, I'm going to start beating you. I don't know when I'll stop."

Kronos ignored him. "I wasn't lying earlier when I said that I feel no animosity towards your dimension. Really, the only reason I even decided to offer my aid to Zedd was because I was bored. When you've been around since the dawn of time, you tend to get bored very, very quickly. But I like your world. I like your race. No matter what, you always find a way to bounce back. Humans are some of the most resourceful creatures in the multiverse. And yet, at the same time, they are the most arrogant and greedy. So either way, I do have some form of motivation."

"You couldn't have brought me here just to say that."

"You're right. I want you to do something for me."

"Forget it."

"You haven't even heard what I'm going to ask you. How can you refuse when you have no idea what I want you to do?"

"Simple. All I have to do is say no."

"At least hear me out. Those ponies that you met….Their world has severely violated my laws."

"I know. I heard what you said. I was there. And if you're going to ask me to destroy them, you can forget it. I want to help them, and if you just separate our worlds, then we can end this now, and no one would have to get hurt."

"I'm afraid it doesn't work like that, my boy. Their world must be punished. They must be destroyed. And you are going to destroy them, no questions asked."

Jason growled. "If you think you can make me – "

Kronos placed his hand over Jason's face, silencing him. "I can, and I will. You will do as I ask. You will not hesitate. You will not question me. You will only do as I command, for I am your lord and master. Understand?" Jason struggled against Kronos's grip, his screams of anger muffled by Kronos's massive hand. "I'll take that as a yes." He stepped back.

"You son of a – !" Jason's screams were muffled as the cocoon fully engulfed him. He felt the tendrils of the inner walls push their way into his ears, worm their way into his brain. He could feel them wrapping around his brain, flattening themselves out, compressing themselves into the various crevasses of his brain, filling his mind with thoughts that weren't his, thoughts he would never even dream of thinking. It was like he was becoming a different person.

He could feel the tendrils twisting him as they sank further and further into his brain; felt them bring out all the negative thoughts and feelings – feelings of anger, of resentment, of hatred, of rage, of fear, felt it all coming up and replacing everything else, replacing his love for his friends, his desire to protect the weak and the innocent, his bravery in the face of danger.

Try as he might, the negative thoughts and feelings all sprung up. He no longer felt love for his friends, the other Power Rangers – now he felt hatred and resentment towards them. He was the leader, the one who gave the orders and led them into battle, and they wanted to take his place. They wanted to prove that they were better leaders than him.

He no longer cared for the weak and the innocent; let them protect themselves. Or call the police. After all, that was what they were for. The Power Rangers weren't the everyman's personal bodyguards.

But most of all, he felt angry – angry at one person in particular. Ever since he joined the team, he had shown Jason up, had gotten everyone to give him so much praise and love, leaving Jason feel overshadowed. How was Tommy any better a Power Ranger than he was?

His vision returned to him as the cocoon split open – Kronos had sliced it open with his staff. Jason fell out, collapsing at Kronos's feet, too tired to move.

"I take it you're ready?" Kronos asked.

Jason took several deep breaths, gathering up his strength. He slowly stood up and stared Kronos in the eye.

"But there's one thing I have to do first."

"What would that be?"

"Tommy Oliver. The White Ranger. I must destroy him."

"And then you will destroy the other Power Rangers, and the denizens of Equestria, yes?"

Slowly, Jason nodded.


	8. Red Ranger vs White Ranger

RED RANGER VS. WHITE RANGER

THEY WERE TIRED, PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY EXHAUSTED; THE ONLY ONES who still had any energy were Spike and the fillies, and they were off playing somewhere. When they got back to the Command Center, Alpha had been trying to keep the fillies away from the control consoles.

"And I thought HUMAN children were a handful," Alpha huffed.

That was nearly three hours ago. Once everything had settled down, they had begun searching for Jason, scanning every frequency they could to find his power signature.

Nothing. It was like he never existed at all.

"Come on," Tommy hissed through gritted teeth. "Come on, Jason. Where are you, man?"

"You two are close, aren't you?" Scootaloo asked.

"Jason was one of the first friends I made when I moved to Angel Grove," Tommy replied. "He freed me from Rita's spell when I first became a Power Ranger. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be here right now."

"None of us would be here right now if it weren't for Jason," Trini added. "He's been leading us since the beginning. He's got us through some of the most difficult times we've ever faced. And he's always been there for us."

The ponies huddled together in the corner of the room. They figured that the humans needed their space. And besides, there were a few things they had to discuss.

"These Power Rangers – they're a lot like us," Rarity said.

"How do you figure?" Applejack wondered.

"They're the best of friends, they care deeply for one another, and they're the defenders of their world," Rarity answered. "As far as I can tell, the only difference is that they stand on two legs and are furless."

"Rarity's right," Twilight said with a nod. "Maybe our worlds are more alike than we think."

"Indeed they are," Zordon said, his booming voice catching them off guard. "This world and Equestria may look different and function under different laws, but deep down, they are very much alike. Our world is lucky to have the Power Rangers, and your world is lucky to have the Elements of Harmony."

"So you know about those, huh?" Rainbow Dash asked. Zordon smiled and nodded. "Figures."

Zack began pacing the room. "That Kronos guy – he took Jason somewhere. Where do you think they went?"

"Well, if I were in Kronos's position," Discord said, "I'd probably go someplace secret, someplace only I knew. From there I'd probably try to twist Jason to the dark side – you know, make him turn against his friends. Of course, this is all from the standpoint of someone who used to do that for funsies."

"Yeah, we know," Twilight growled, shooting him a dirty look.

"Look, all I'm saying is that Kronos is probably turning Jason to his side, making him evil. If not evil, at least a jerk. And I don't get 'jerk' out of that guy."

"He's not a jerk," Kimberly said. "Jason might look tough, and he is pretty strong, but he's actually very kind and sweet. He wouldn't hurt a fly, unless he was really angry at it. And even then, it takes a lot for Jason to get angry."

"He likes flies?" Fluttershy asked. "I've got a few flies back home I think he'd like to meet. There's Sam, and Bella, and Jesse, and Tito…."

"Hang on," Billy said. He twisted some knobs on a control panel. "I think we've got him."

"Are ya sure about that?" Apple Bloom asked. "All I see's a bunch of flashing buttons and stuff."

"No, that's him," Alpha said. "We did it! We found him! He's downtown!" He began pressing a series of buttons on the console. "Teleporting him in now."

Jason appeared in the room, warping in via a flash of red light. He collapsed onto the floor. His breathing was labored; whatever Kronos had put him through had taken a lot out of him. Slowly, he stood up. His legs were shaking, and he had to hold on to a nearby console to support himself.

"Jason? Are you alright, sugar cube?" Applejack asked.

Jason took a few deep breaths. "I'm fine. He roughed me up a little bit, but I gave him a few good hits in return. Still, that guy hurts."

"But at least you're okay," Fluttershy said. "Thank goodness. We were so worried."

"I wasn't. I knew he'd be fine," Rainbow Dash boasted.

"Uh huh," Discord huffed. "Look, something doesn't seem right." He pointed to Jason. "We found you a little too easily, pally boy. I had no idea where you were, the talking head had no idea where you were. So do you want to tell us exactly what happened? Where did Kronos take you?"

Jason shook his head. "Sorry. I don't remember."

Discord took a few steps towards Jason. "Your mouth may say you don't remember, but guess what? Eyes never lie. Kronos did something to you, I can tell. Trust me, I know the signs."

Jason pushed Discord back. "Back off, freak. I've had a very long day. I'm tired, and I'm not in the mood for any of your antics."

"He doesn't usually act like that, does he?" Spike asked Billy.

"No. But given the circumstances, it's not without reason." He turned to Jason. "Look, we're all a little tired. So why don't we just make sure that you're one hundred percent okay before we get some rest?"

"You guys, I'm telling you, I'm okay," Jason said defensively. "Why are you so concerned?"

"Because we're your friends," Trini said. "Because we love you. You would do the same for us."

"She's right, dude," Tommy put in. "Come on; just one quick scan and we can all go get a couple hours' sleep."

Jason sighed. "Okay. Fine. But, there's one thing I have to do first before we do anything." He walked over to Tommy. "I've been wanting to do this for a while now."

His fist connected with the side of Tommy's face, sending him sprawling to the floor.

A collective gasp filled the room.

"What the buck are you doing?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "That's Tommy! He's your friend!"

Tommy looked up at Jason. He wiped some blood from his mouth. "What the hell was that for?"

"Oh, don't act like you don't know!" Jason bellowed. "Ever since you came onto this team, you've been trying to take my place! I know it; you know it; the other Rangers know it! Don't try to deny it, Tommy! I know that you want to be the leader! Well, guess what, 'friend': The only way that's going to happen is if you take the job from me. And let me tell you, that's not going to happen. I'll destroy you before you even have the chance."

Tommy stood up. "What in the world are you talking about? I don't want your job. You're a great leader. No one could ever take your place."

"YOU'RE LYING!"

"Jason, listen to him!" Billy pleaded.

Jason ignored him; he took out his Power Morpher. "I'm not going to stand around and wait for you to take my place, Tommy. If you want the job, you're going to have to take it from me. By force!" He held the Morpher out in front of him and morphed into the Red Ranger. He took his Blade Blaster out of its holster, keeping it in its dagger form, and lunged at Tommy.

Tommy quickly moved out of the way, leaping and rolling to avoid Jason's attack. "Stop! I don't want to fight you!"

"I'm not giving you a choice!"

Discord warped in between them. "Okay, boys. I think I see what's going on here. Looks to me like Jason's been hit with some corrupting powers."

"Corrupting powers?" Trini repeated.

"Someone – I think we all know who – used his powers to corrupt Jason's mind, pretty much turning him to the dark side. After all, he wouldn't willingly attack Tommy, would he?"

"No, he wouldn't," Alpha said.

"So he's acting like a bad guy even though he doesn't want to?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"In a sense," Discord replied.

Rainbow Dash shot a dirty look in Discord's direction. "That sounds familiar."

"I've put that behind me, remember?"

"GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!" Jason yelled. He threw Discord aside and charged for Tommy again. Tommy cartwheeled out of the way of Jason's attack and upon landing on his feet, he took out his Power Morpher and morphed into the White Ranger. "Morphing won't help you!"

"Like I have a choice?" He took out his sword. "Saba, Jason's not himself."

"Is he talking to his sword?" Twilight asked.

And then the sword – Saba – spoke. "Jason, what has happened?"

"Wait, hold on, did that sword just talk?" Applejack asked.

"Feels weird, doesn't it?" Zack asked her. "Things that shouldn't talk being able to talk."

Jason lunged at Tommy again. Tommy barely managed to raise his weapon, blocking Jason's attack. Jason kept coming, his Blade Blaster slamming against Saba's blade as Tommy deflected the attacks. Sparks flew off of the blades every time they connected. They crossed weapons and pushed against each other, trying to gain the upper hand.

"Jason, I don't know what has happened to you, but you have to snap out of it!" Saba pleaded. "Please, return to your senses! Control yourself!"

"Shut up, you stupid sword," Jason growled. "NO ONE'S LISTENING!" He pushed Tommy back.

"Stop it, boys!" Rarity yelled. "Stop this at once!"

Jason glanced over to her. She couldn't see his eyes through the visor of his helmet, but she knew what kind of look he was giving her. She knew it was a look of anger – maybe not necessarily directed towards her, but it was enough to send a chill down her spine and make her fur stand on end. She instinctively shrunk back as Jason returned his gaze to Tommy, and the two resumed their bout.

Jason delivered a hard punch to Tommy's gut. As Tommy doubled over, trying to get his breath back, Jason grabbed Tommy and threw him against a nearby control console, breaking some knobs and buttons and sending sparks flying everywhere.

"Ai yi yi yi yi! Jason, Tommy, you're going to destroy the Command Center!" Alpha cried.

"You guys, they needed that!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "Stop breaking things!"

Twilight turned to Zack. "Isn't there anything we can do?"

Zack shook his head. "I don't know. If it was Zedd doing this we could snap him out of it no problem. We've never dealt with a god doing this."

Discord put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Zack. I know what to do. I've got experience with this sort of thing." He took a step towards Jason and Tommy, who were still viciously trading blows. "Hey, Jason!"

"What do you want, freak?"

"You need to chill out," Discord said. He took a deep breath and blew it out. His breath hit Jason, instantly freezing him in place. His feet froze first, followed by his arms, preventing him from moving or attacking.

Jason struggled against his icy bonds. "Hey! Let me go, damn it!"

"Not until we fix this little problem," Discord said as he walked over to Jason. "Look, you're not yourself. That's pretty clear now. It's also clear that Kronos is to blame. Now, I would like to know how he did it and how to replace it."

"Discord, what are you getting at?" Kimberly asked.

"Weren't you listening, Pinky?" Discord asked her in return. "And no, Pinkie Pie, I wasn't talking to you. Now, there's a few ways we can figure this out. You can either tell us what happened, or I can go rooting through your mind and figure it out myself. Pick one."

"I'm not telling you shit," Jason growled.

"Hey! He said a bad word!" Scootaloo shouted.

"You want to be difficult, do you?" Discord asked in a mocking manner? He sighed. "Okay. Looks like I'm rooting through that melon-shaped brain of yours." He snapped his fingers, and Jason's helmet disappeared. Jason growled at Discord, narrowing his eyes and baring his teeth in anger. He growled. "Yeah, yeah, _grr rawr_ to you too, pal." He reached one mismatched hand out to Jason's ear. "Hold still."

"Get your god damn hands away from me!" Jason bellowed. He began to move his arms, slowly causing the icy bonds to crack. A few seconds later, the ice around his arms and legs shattered. He slashed at Discord, the tip of his Blade Blaster cutting into his skin. "Move it!" He charged for Tommy again.

Tommy had no time to react; Jason's weapon hit, sending a shower of sparks off of Tommy's suit and throwing him to the ground. Saba slipped from Tommy's hand. Jason quickly ran over and picked up the sword, holding it so that the tiger-like face on the handle was facing away – Saba's eyes could shoot lasers at his enemies, and Jason didn't want to risk being on the receiving end of that attack.

He walked back over to Tommy and planted his foot on Tommy's chest, holding him down.

"Jason, please, don't do this," Tommy pleaded.

"Listen to him!" Trini shouted.

"Jason, you're not a bad guy!" Rainbow Dash put in. "Don't off your friend!"

Jason glanced over to them. "Shut up! And wait your turns. Kronos asked me to destroy all of you next. But first…." He returned his gaze to Tommy. "Time to die, White Ranger." He raised the sword, knelt down, and brought the sword down, the blade aimed right for Tommy's heart.

"Jason, don't do it!" Billy cried.

"Jason, enough!" Zordon bellowed.

Tommy grabbed the sword's blade, holding it back. He struggled to push Jason back; Jason was much more powerful than Tommy, much stronger, and Tommy found it difficult to keep the sword away from his body.

"Jason, please, you do not have to do this," Saba pleaded. "This isn't you. We all know it."

"Shut up, you damn sword," Jason hissed. "Just finish it! Kill the White Ranger!"

A beam of green energy shot the sword out of Jason's hands. This moment of distraction was enough for Tommy to kick Jason off of him and climb to his feet. They both looked in the direction the beam had come from.

Sweetie Belle's tiny horn was glowing, surrounded by an aura of light green energy.

"That's enough!" she yelled, her high-pitched voice cracking. "You two are friends, aren't you? You shouldn't be fighting each other like that!"

"Sweetie Belle," Rarity said, "Later on, you're going to tell me how you learned to do that."

"Me, friends with this son of a bitch?" Jason asked, ignoring Rarity. "Maybe before, but not anymore, not since I've had my eyes opened. Not since I realized what he really wants."

"The only thing I want is to have my friend back," Tommy said. He took off his helmet; his eyes were glistening with tears of sorrow. "Jason, please, let us help you. I don't want to fight you."

"Give it a rest," Jason hissed.

Discord warped in between them. "Okay, break it up, boys," he said. "There's only one way to solve this problem, and I'm the only one who can do it." He turned to Jason. "There's something in your head, and I'm taking it out. Just to warn you, it's going to hurt. A lot."

Without waiting for a reply, he plunged his hand into Jason's ear. Jason froze as Discord's hand went deeper and deeper into Jason's head.

"Okay, past the ear drum. Past the inner ear. Oh, there's the brain. Okay, I don't want to pull out anything that's not supposed to be there."

Everyone else watching this scene unfold couldn't help but wince. "That does look like it hurts," Tommy said.

"If Discord isn't careful, he could end up doing irreparable damage to Jason,"  
Billy whispered.

"Discord, please, be careful," Fluttershy squeaked.

"I know what I'm doing," Discord said. "And I think I've found the intruder. Doesn't feel like brains. Okay, got it. Ready, Red Man?" He began to pull.

Jason's scream of agony echoed through the room. No one bothered to cover their ears; they were too transfixed by the scene in front of them. They watched as Discord pulled his arm out of Jason's ear, followed by his hand. A long, black thread was pinched between this eagle talons. Jason screamed even louder as more and more of the black thread was pulled out of his head – it was incredibly painful for him, and for everyone watching. Even Zordon had to wince at this. Blood began to ooze out of Jason's ear, making him scream even louder, until, finally, the thread was pulled completely out of his head.

Jason collapsed to the ground, holding his ear with both hands. Blood oozed between his fingers, and he began to cry, it was so painful. This was a rare thing for the other Power Rangers to see – they'd never seen Jason cry before, not for anything. And yet, here he was, lying in the fetal position on the floor, holding his ear as it continued to bleed, tears streaming out of his eyes from the pain and the agony of having that thread removed from his head.

"What is that?" Tommy asked; the less he looked at his friend in his condition, the better.

"One of Kronos's mind-altering tendrils," Discord said. "He may be a god of dimensions, but that doesn't mean he's without other toys to play with. These things, they twist people, make them do as Kronos wants them to do. It's nasty, and it's got to go." He snapped his fingers, and the tendril caught fire, quickly being reduced to ash.

They turned back to Jason, who was still lying on the floor. The room had gone silent now, save for Jason's quiet sobs. His ear was still bleeding, but not as much as it had been a moment ago. He no longer seemed to be in as much pain as he had been earlier.

Sweetie Belle took a step towards Jason. Rarity put a hoof in front of her, holding her back. She shook her head, telling Sweetie Belle to stay where she was.

Instead, Rarity stepped towards Jason. She put a supportive hoof on his shoulder.

"It wasn't your fault, darling," she said softly.

Trini joined her. "She's right. Kronos is to blame, not you." She put her hands on Jason's shoulders and helped him to his feet. "It's okay. Your friends are here. You're okay." She gently pulled his hand away from his ear. "Let me see. It doesn't look too bad. I think most of the bleeding has stopped. You should be okay."

"I should be, but I'm not," Jason whispered, his voice cracking. He wiped his eyes and walked over to Tommy. "Tommy, I – I'm sorry. I tried to stop myself, I really did, but I couldn't. Kronos, he – he did this. He made me do this."

Tommy put a hand on Jason's shoulder. "I know. I'm not mad."

The other Power Rangers, Spike, the ponies, and Discord gathered around them. "None of us are," Kimberly said.

"Why would we be mad?" Zack asked. "I'm sure you were fighting it the whole time."

Billy nodded his head in agreement. "That's right. We all would have if we were in your position."

"Which we have been," Twilight put in. She glanced over at Discord. "Glad we got that out of your system."

"Me too," Discord whispered.

"I'm just glad you're both okay," Fluttershy said quietly.

"Same here," Rainbow Dash agreed. "And besides, friends fighting each other for whatever reason is so not cool."

"No it ain't," Applejack said with a shake of her head. "I'm just glad that none of ya was seriously hurt."

"You sure about that?" Jason asked. He pushed his way past them and took a few steps away. "I almost killed Tommy! With his own weapon!"

"It was not of your own accord," Saba assured him.

"The sword's right," Spike agreed. "It's that Kronos creep who's to blame."

"Maybe," Jason said. He turned away and closed his eyes, keeping more tears from coming – he'd already let them see him cry more than he would have liked. "It was like I was being tortured mentally."

Rarity lowered her eyes to the floor. She knew how Jason was feeling – she, too, had once been subjected to the most devastating physical and psychological torture she could ever imagine. And while she had managed to get over it, it took over a year and a visit to the Autobots' world. She knew exactly what he meant, knew exactly what he was feeling right now.

"Cheer up," Pinkie Pie chirped. "Everyone is A-OK, right? That's all that matters. Isn't it?"

"I don't know, maybe." He turned and walked away again. "You guys, I – I need to be alone for a little while. I need to think about some things."

He started walking down the nearby hallway, heading for the exit.


	9. Remorse

REMORSE

JASON SHIVERED – THE EARLY MORNING AIR WAS A LITTLE TOO CHILLY FOR him. That was one thing he didn't like about the area they lived in – the days were sweltering, but the nights were so cold. He held his arms close to his chest, trying to keep himself warm.

The cold wasn't the only reason he was shivering – he was still crying, still thinking about what he did under Kronos's influence. How could he have let that happen? How could he have allowed Kronos to take control of his mind and make him fight – almost kill – one of his best friends? He wasn't just sad and upset, he was angry – angry at Kronos, and angry at himself.

 _How could I have been so weak? How could I have been so foolish? I can't believe I let this happen._ He wiped his eyes, trying to get rid of the tears. He refused to let anyone see him cry – he always told everyone that he cried on the inside, and while it was usually said as a joke, he always meant what he said. He never shed tears in public, or around his friends – not even his mother would see him cry. Ever since the divorce, back when Jason was a young child, he never let her see him so much as shed a single tear. It was his way of showing how willfully strong he was, of showing how people could look up to him.

That was why he was out here, on the rocks outside the Command Center, overlooking the desert, the lights of the city glowing in the distance, the sky turning a light shade of blue as night turned into day. He hadn't realized it until now, but he had been awake for over twenty-four hours. He was starting to feel the fatigue, felt his eyes wanting to close.

He shook his head, trying to keep himself awake. If he fell asleep now, he had no idea what sort of dreams he would have. He didn't want to risk dreaming about how close he had come to killing Tommy – with his own weapon, no less! He didn't want to dream about what he would have done if he hadn't been stopped, if Discord hadn't intervened.

"Jason? Are you okay?"

Jason glanced over his shoulder; saw the fillies approaching. Their wide, innocent eyes were filled with worry.

"I thought I said I wanted to be alone," he said.

"You did," Scootaloo said. "But we decided to join you anyway. You look like you need somepony to talk to. I know that when I'm upset I go to Rainbow Dash. She's not my real sister, but I know she'll always be there for me when I need her."

"And what we think you need right now is some friends to comfort you," Apple Bloom put in.

Jason turned away. "How can you call us friends? We're from completely different worlds, and we barely know each other."

The fillies sat down next to him – Sweetie Belle on his left, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo on his right. They huddled close to him, letting him feel the warmth of their tiny bodies, their soft fur brushing up against his bare arms. He pulled his arms closer to him and sniffled, trying to stop crying.

"Y'know, Applejack tells me all the time that it's okay to cry," Apple Bloom said. "You don't have to hide it from everypony."

"Yes I do," Jason told her. "And it's not just because I'm the Red Ranger. It's for my mom. Since my dad divorced her, she's had a very hard time, and so have I. I've had to be strong for her, which means no tears. And I'm the leader of the Power Rangers – that means that I can't show sadness or fear. The other Power Rangers look to me for guidance. I have to be strong for them. Don't you get it, kids? That's why I can't shed even a single tear."

"We get it, you're supposed to be the tough one," Scootaloo said. "But Kimberly told us that you're really a lot like Fluttershy."

"What do you mean by that?"

"She told us how kind and sweet you are," Sweetie Belle answered. "Said you wouldn't hurt anyone unless you were really angry, and she said that that doesn't happen a whole lot. She may as well have said that you're a big teddy bear."

Jason scoffed. "If you say so." He gently pushed Sweetie Belle away from him and reached into his pocket for his iPod.

"What's that thing?" Apple Bloom asked.

"It plays music," Jason said as he untangled the headphones. "When I'm upset, I listen to music. It helps raise my spirits a little bit." He put the buds in his ears and turned the device on.

The three fillies couldn't hear the music, just the words as Jason silently sang along.

 _Tick tock, hear the clock countdown_

 _Wish the minute hand could be rewound_

 _So much to do and so much I need to say_

 _Will tomorrow be too late?_

 _Feel the moment slip into the past_

 _Like sand through an hourglass_

 _In the madness, I guess, I just forget_

 _To do all the things I said_

 _Time passes by, never thought I'd wind up_

 _One step behind, now I've made my mind up_

 _Today, I'm gonna try a little harder_

 _Gonna make every minute last longer_

 _Gonna learn to forgive and forget_

 _'Cause we don't have long, gonna make the most of it_

 _Today, I'm gonna love my enemies_

 _Reach out to somebody who needs me_

 _Make a change, make the world a better place_

 _'Cause tomorrow could be one day too late_

 _One day too late, one day too late_

 _Tick tock, hear my life pass by_

 _I can't erase and I can't rewind_

 _Of all the things I regret the most I do_

 _Wish I'd spent more time with you_

 _Here's my chance for a new beginning_

 _I saved the best for a better ending_

 _In the end I'll make it up to you_

 _You'll see, you'll get the very best of me_

 _Time passes by, never thought I'd wind up_

 _One step behind, now I've made my mind up_

 _Today, I'm gonna try a little harder_

 _Gonna make every minute last longer_

 _Gonna learn to forgive and forget_

 _'Cause we don't have long, gonna make the most of it_

 _Today, I'm gonna love my enemies_

 _Reach out to somebody who needs me_

 _Make a change, make the world a better place_

 _'Cause tomorrow could be one day too late_

 _Your time is running out_

 _You're never gonna get it back_

 _So make the most of every moment_

 _Stop saving the best for last_

 _Today, I'm gonna try a little harder_

 _Gonna make every minute last longer_

 _Gonna learn to forgive and forget_

 _'Cause we don't have long, gonna make the most of it_

 _Today, I'm gonna love my enemies_

 _Reach out to somebody who needs me_

 _Make a change, make the world a better place_

 _'Cause tomorrow could be one day too late_

 _One day too late, one day too late_

 _One day too late, one day too late_

He felt the fillies brushing up against him; their bodies were shaking. He took his earbuds out of his ears. "Are you okay?"

"It's gettin' a might chilly out here," Apple Bloom said. "Can we go in now?"

A tiny smile graced Jason's face. "Sure." He stood up and led them inside, back into the warmth. As they walked, his mind began to wander – everything he had said and done while under Kronos's influence….Was that how Tommy felt while under Rita's control? Did Tommy feel just as lost, just as broken, unable to stop himself? Was he crying on the inside, screaming for himself to stop hurting his friends? It must have; Tommy had been remorseful and apologetic after Jason broke Rita's spell, and he spent the few weeks afterwards trying to make up for all the damage he had caused.

They made it back into the central atrium of the Command Center, just in time to hear the final snippets of a conversation between Kimberly and Rarity.

"I must say, I simply adore your superhero outfits. One look at them, and I feel the spark of inspiration. I may just model my new summer line after them – now what catchy name should I give it? Power Ranger chic? Superhero soiree? Oh, I simply have no idea." She spotted Jason and the fillies out the corner of her eye. "Oh. You're all back."

"Yeah. Listen, you guys, I know what you're all going to say – what happened earlier wasn't my fault. And you're right. I still feel bad about it, but I guess that's normal."

"It is normal," Tommy said. "I know exactly how you feel. I went through the same thing, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember," Jason replied with a nod to his friend. "I just want you guys to know that I'm sorry." He turned to Discord. "And thanks for freeing me."

"It's what I do, Red Man."

"You also don't shut up," Zack griped. He jerked a thumb in Discord's direction. "This guy has been going on non-stop. Yak yak yak yak yak. And I thought Skull with ten pixie sticks was bad."

"If you think I talk a lot," Discord said as he put an arm around Zack's shoulders, "then you haven't met Pinkie Pie yet."

"That can wait until later," Jason said. He yawned and stretched; most everyone here had been awake for more than twenty-four hours, and the fatigue was starting to catch up to them. "Okay, here's what we're going to do: We're going to go home and get a few hours' rest." He turned to the ponies. "And then we're going to go scope out your world. Deal?"

"Deal," Twilight replied. "Just stay away from the Everfree Forest."

############################

Jason climbed through the window into his bedroom; he had teleported to his back yard after leaving the Command Center and snuck through the window, in case his mother was still asleep – he didn't want to wake her up. She tended to be cranky when she was woken up before she was ready.

He quietly put the screen back in its place and slowly closed the window, until he heard it click as it was locked into place.

"Where were you?"

Jason wheeled around, coming face to face with his mother. She ran to him and threw her arms around him, catching him by surprise.

"When the tremors hit, and you didn't come home, I was worried. I thought maybe you'd been hurt. I was calling for you and went looking for you, but I never found you and you didn't answer."

"I'm sorry, Mom," Jason said. _I have to think of a lie, and fast._ "After the tremors, me and my friends went looking to see if anyone needed help. You know, just in case someone had been hurt. I'm sorry I was out for so long."

His mother stepped away and stared at him. It was a look he had seen before; she was trying to decide whether or not he was telling the truth. Jason knew he was lying – lying had become habitual since he was recruited to be the Red Ranger – and so far, his mother had bought everything he'd told her. But now? He wasn't entirely sure. He was bound to slip up; she was going to discover the truth sooner or later.

But as long as she didn't find out by him telling her, that would be acceptable. It was one of the three rules they had to follow as Power Rangers, rules that Zordon had lain down when he first recruited them – never use their powers for personal gain; never escalate a battle unless forced to and no other options remained; and never reveal their identities to anyone, let them find out by themselves.

"You look terrible," his mother said with a sigh.

 _Thank God we're changing the subject,_ he thought. "I feel terrible," he said. "I'd like to tell you all about my day, Mom, but right now, I want to get a shower, and after that, I need some sleep."

She hugged him again, nearly gagging from the smell of sweat and dirt that came off of his body. "Okay. Get some rest, honey."

Jason waited until she left the room to head to the bathroom. It was one of the fastest showers he'd ever taken – in and out in less than five minutes. Once back in his bedroom, he set his alarm clock for 9:30 – that gave him three hours' to sleep – and flopped down on the mattress, falling into a dreamless sleep before his head hit the pillow.


	10. Zecora's Solution

ZECORA'S SOLUTION

THE BEDS DISCORD HAD CONJURED UP FOR THEM WEREN'T THE MOST comfortable things ever made, but they were better than sleeping on the hard concrete floor. Most of them had done that at least once before – the first time they went to another world – and it was very unpleasant. At least Discord's magically-created beds kept them off the floor, but did they have to be made so itchy? Applejack had spent most of the night scratching herself thanks to the wool, which seemed like it was made out of llama or alpaca fur – some of the itchiest things she knew of.

The itchiness of the fabric she could handle.

It was the loud banging of a gong that snapped her awake.

"Wakey wakey, rise and shine, up and at 'em, we got us a big day today!" Discord yelled as he banged on his gong. "So wake up, sleepy heads! Same goes for you, Big Head in the Tube."

Alpha held his hands on the sides of his head. "Ai yi yi yi yi, why do those things have to be so loud?"

Discord magically replaced his gong with a French horn. "I could have used this." He blew into the horn, making a deep, rumbling noise.

"Ow ow ow!" Scootaloo cried as she held her ears against the sides of her head, holding them down with her front hooves. "I think that's worse than the gong."

"I commend your enthusiasm, Discord," Zordon said. "However, I believe Scootaloo is right. These loud instruments may not be the best way to wake everyone from their slumber."

Pinkie Pie bounced up and down excitedly. "I'm awake, I'm awake, I'm awake!"

"Hey guys, Pinkie's awake," Rainbow Dash snarked. She yawned and stretched her front legs and her wings. "How long did we sleep?"

"Barely three hours," Twilight reported. "I don't feel like I got any rest at all."

"I know what ya mean," Applejack said. She placed her cowboy hat on her head and pulled Apple Bloom close for a wake up hug. "I'm still plum tuckered out."

"Does anypony have the time?" Rarity asked as she used her magic to run a brush through Sweetie Belle's mane, curling it out. "I'm afraid I forgot to bring a watch."

"It's half past nine," Fluttershy replied, stifling a yawn.

Twilight huffed. "Great. That leaves just over a half hour to meet the Power Rangers at the rift."

"Aw, no time for breakfast?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"I'm afraid not, Pinkie," Twilight answered. "But look at it this way – we're going back to Equestria. As we're showing the Power Rangers around – hopefully without those gray goons – "

"Putties," Alpha corrected her.

"Hopefully without those Putties attacking us," Twilight finished, slightly annoyed that Alpha had interrupted her, "we can get something to eat while we're there. Okay, everypony?"

"I hope so," Pinkie Pie said. "I've got a rumbly in my tumbly."

"Okay, everypony, gather around," Twilight said. "I'll get us to the rift. Maybe the Rangers are already there." She focused her energy into her horn, and an instant later, they were on the outskirts of the city, standing next to the rift, the Rangers a few meters away, all still looking very tired. "Oh. You guys are here already."

"Been here for a good twenty minutes," Zack said. He yawned. "Didn't get enough sleep."

"Join the club, Black Ranger," Discord said as he stretched his arms. They became long and wavy, like wet noodles. He pulled them back into his body. "Nothing like a good stretch."

Jason turned his attention to the rift, to the world on the other side. "So that's where you all are from, is it?"

Twilight stepped up to join him. "Yeah. That's Equestria." She looked up at him. "Look, Jason, I know you think it's important to go over there, but don't you think we should worry more about Kronos than exploration?"

"You guys came to explore our world, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but that was before we learned about Kronos," Rainbow Dash said. "How about we track Kronos down and give him what for." She raised a hoof. "Anyone second that motion?"

"That's not going to happen just yet, Rainbow Dash," Tommy told her. "Remember what happened last night? We barely got to touch him, and that's not counting what he did to Jason."

"And besides," Jason added, "you agreed to this. Remember?"

"I know," Twilight said. "It's just, I don't think this is really important."

"It might be if we end up taking the battle over there," Trini pointed out. "For all we know, we just might. But we'll take your advice and stay away from that forest you talked about, okay?"

Twilight thought for a moment. She did agree to this, and she also told them to stay away from the Everfree Forest. Maybe Trini had a good point; if the battle ended up going to Equestria, it would help if the Power Rangers knew a little bit of the way around – same was true for Twilight and her friends when it came to Angel Grove. Knowing their way around could prove beneficial.

She looked to her friends. They'd brought Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Spike along with them; the plan was to leave them at home so the older ponies and Discord could focus on dealing with Kronos. She knew Spike and the fillies would protest, but it was for their own good.

"What do you want us to do?" Scootaloo asked as she and the other two fillies stepped forward, their chests puffed out in pride. They'd shown a lot more self-confidence ever since they earned their Cutie Marks a few short weeks ago; ironic, that their Cutie Marks appeared when they decided to stop doing everything they could to earn them.

"Look, kids, I know you want to help us," Twilight said, "but we don't want you to get hurt. So, maybe it's better if you all go to your homes and stay there."

"You're kidding. You're kidding, right?" Apple Bloom asked. "Stay home and miss all the excitement?"

"Twi's right, li'l sis," Applejack said as she pulled Apple Bloom in for a light hug. "I came close to losin' you once already. It ain't happenin' again."

"Applejack, I'll be fine," Apple Bloom protested. She tried to pull away, but Applejack was holding her tight. "I don't think there'll be any Dark Energon this time."

"Still, I ain't gonna take that chance," Applejack replied. "You're goin' home, and you're gonna be stayin' with Big Mac and Granny Smith. Y'hear?"

"The same goes for you too, Sweetie Belle," Rarity told her little sister. "You are going straight back to Carousel Boutique. I simply refuse to put you in danger ever again."

"Oh, okay," Sweetie Belle said, a slight whine to her voice.

Rainbow Dash gave Scootaloo a small pat on the head. "Yeah, you're gonna have to sit this one out too, squirt."

"Fine," Scootaloo huffed. "Just kick some tail for me, would you?"

"You got it." The two Pegasi bumped hooves.

Kimberly rolled the sleeves of her bright pink sweater up to her elbows. "These things are getting warm. Why are we wearing sweaters again?"

"Because it's pretty chilly on the other side," Billy answered.

"Winter Wrap Up was only a few days ago, and even though it's springtime now, there's still a bit of a chill in the air," Fluttershy said, her voice no more than a tiny squeak. She looked up at Discord. "Thanks for helping us, by the way."

"Well, you looked like you needed it," Discord said. "After all, when was the last time Cloudsdale called for so much snow?"

"Hey, it's not their fault that all the snow this year made up for last winter," Rainbow Dash retorted.

Jason leaned over to the other Rangers. "What are they talking about?"

"Must be something to do with their world, because I am totally lost," Zack answered.

"Same here," Kimberly said. She cleared her throat. "Hey, you guys? If it's not too much trouble, I think it'd be a good idea to get moving."

"Good idea," Jason said. He took a step towards the rift; held a hand out to it. His hand passed through; he was expecting to feel something, some pressure or a tingling sensation – instead, it felt like his hand was passing through air.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped through the rift. The ponies, Spike, Discord, and the other Power Rangers followed a few seconds later.

The image he saw on the Angel Grove side of the rift was blurry and difficult to make out, but now, he could see the ponies' world for what it truly was – at least, this little hamlet, anyway. It was a small village – with a population probably just over a thousand residents – with huts, houses, and cottages made out of wood, the roofs made of straw or wood or grass. Everything had an equine design to it – horseshoes, saddles, bits, bridles, stirrups. The dirt and gravel road crunched beneath his shoes. A slight breeze was blowing; he could feel the chill on his face and his fingers, making him glad Billy and Tommy had told them to dress warm. The bright yellow sun was shining down from a clear blue sky.

Ponies walked this way and that, some conversing with each other, some glancing at the Power Rangers. It made him feel slightly uncomfortable, being stared at by so many ponies. It just wasn't natural?

 _Then again, since Zordon recruited us, what HAS passed for natural? Not a whole lot._

"I think the first thing we should do is get something to eat," Rarity said. "Is anypony else feeling just the tiniest bit hungry?"

"I already told you all about my rumbly tumbly," Pinkie Pie said as she bounced happily up and down.

"Do you ever stop bouncing?" Zack asked, curious.

"Only when I'm sleeping."

"Guys, we need to focus on learning where thing are here," Jason said, butting into their conversation. "Remember, this is just in case we end up fighting over here." He turned to Twilight. "But I think Rarity's right. Where's the nearest restaurant? We can't do much on empty stomachs."

Pinkie Pie skipped ahead of him. "Sugar Cube Corner is right this way!" she happily chirped.

"Everyone follow the bouncing pony," Zack joked. Discord started hopping after her. "I didn't mean literally!" He rolled his eyes and turned to Applejack. "How do you put up with that guy?"

"It's easier than ya think, Zack."

############################

Pinkie Pie led them to a gingerbread shaped house in the center of the village. The sweet scent of baked goods wafted from the building and into their nostrils, making their already-growling stomachs growl even louder. Most of them hadn't had anything to eat for nearly twenty-four hours, and they were so hungry they didn't care what they ate.

The two ponies who ran the restaurant – Mr. and Mrs. Cake – happily served the plates of cupcakes and muffins. The second the plates were placed on the table, they began to eat. Pinkie Pie was stuffing cupcakes and muffins into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out like a squirrel's. Discord sucked four platefuls up with a giant swirly straw he magically conjured up.

Everyone else was just happy to get some food in their stomachs, even if it was just sugary sweets.

"Oh my," Mrs. Cake said as she watched everyone eat. "I had no idea you were all so hungry."

Zack licked some cupcake icing off of his fingers. "Miss Pony, when you haven't had anything to eat for one full day, your stomach's going to be screaming at you too."

"Thanks for the free cupcakes and muffins, Mr. and Mrs. Cake," Twilight said. She gave the two ponies a respectful nod. "We really needed that extra fuel. Now to get the kids home before we get back to work."

"What exactly are you doing?" Mr. Cake asked as he brought another tray of muffins out for display – a tray of muffins that Discord pulled in with a vacuum cleaner.

"Saving them for later."

"O…kay."

"To answer your question, sir, we're doing some recon," Jason answered. "That way, if the fight ends up coming to this place, we'll know our way around. We'll know the best places to set up defenses and where to attack from."

"Fight? What fight?" Mrs. Cake asked.

"It's a long story, but let's just say that there's a god out there who isn't exactly in a good mood," Discord replied. "I'll leave it at that."

"We've already had an encounter with him," Trini put in. "He walked right through us."

"We're going to make sure that doesn't happen again," Tommy added. "We can beat him. We can make him put our worlds back."

"And we can do it together," Twilight said. "Because we've got something Kronos doesn't have. We've got the magic of friendship on our side."

The Rangers all exchanged confused looks. They'd heard of the power of teamwork – they used it all the time to defeat Zedd's monsters – but never the magic of friendship. At least, not until last night, when Kronos mentioned something about it. It sounded like a silly concept, something a young child would think up when telling a story. But the more they thought about it, the more sense it seemed to make. The magic of friendship, the power of teamwork – they sounded like they were the same thing.

"Kronos is all alone," Twilight continued. "He might have teamed up with this Lord Zedd fellow, but as long as we work together, there isn't anything that we can't overcome."

Discord opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. He sniffed. "Anyone else smell that?"

"Smell what?" Trini asked.

"Oh no," Discord gasped. "My spinach puffs! I left them in the oven!" He warped away.

"Okay, that was weird," Zack said. He turned to Rarity. "Is he always like that?"

"I'm afraid so, Zack."

Jason pushed away from the table and stood up. He turned to Mr. and Mrs. Cake. "Thank you for your hospitality, and the delicious snacks. But we really need to get going. We need to finish our recon before we even think about engaging Kronos in battle again. I'm sure you understand."

"Couldn't you just talk to this person?" Mr. Cake asked.

"He didn't seem like he was in a listening mood last night," Rainbow Dash replied.

"That and he tried to turn Jason into a bad guy," Pinkie Pie added. She was met by several sets of eyes, all with an unapprovingly angry stare. "What? Too soon?"

Twilight paid their bill, and they made their way outside. The afternoon sun was high in the sky, making everything warmer than it had been less than an hour ago. The Rangers were starting to get a little too hot in their heavy sweaters.

Kimberly rolled the sleeves of her sweatshirt up to her elbows. "Kind of wish we'd just worn jackets instead."

Applejack turned to her little sister. "Alright, Apple Bloom. Y'all run on home now and tell Big Mac and Granny Smith that I'm OK. Let 'em know that I'll be home soon, soon as we've figured out this here problem."

"Can't I stay with you?" Apple Bloom whined.

"Sorry, little sis," Applejack said. She pulled the little filly in for a light hug. "I almost lost you once already. I ain't gonna risk that happenin' ever again, y'hear?"

"The same goes for you, Sweetie Belle," Rarity told her sister. "I simply refuse to put you in harm's way. Mother and Father would never let me hear the end of it, and I would never be able to live with myself."

Sweetie Belle simply nodded her head. "Okay, Rarity."

Rainbow Dash gave Scootaloo a light, playful pat on the head. "Yeah, as much as I'd love for you to hang around and watch us kick some tail, squirt, I think it's better if you sit this one out. Things are probably going to get pretty ugly."

"Just give him a good Sonic Rainboom and this jerk will be out of commission for a long time," Scootaloo said.

Rainbow Dash chuckled. "Wouldn't that be something."

####################################

Zecora had been in her hut brewing some soup when the tremors hit. That was nearly five hours ago. Thing seemed to have calmed down, so she decided to go into town to get a few supplies, and to see what all the commotion was about – see what kind of damage the tremors had cause, and decide if she could help or not.

She didn't know much about these rifts; she knew about as much as the average Equestrian, given the experiences over the last eighteen months. Zecora herself hadn't experienced any of these visits to and from other worlds, but she'd heard plenty of stories – the dragon that nearly leveled Ponyville; those Transformers that nearly killed Rarity; the young humans searching for magic wishing stones; Princess Twilight and her friends visiting the Transformers; the demon that made a pact with the Changeling prince….It wasn't anything new to her, despite having never witnessed any of it, only hearing about it from word of mouth.

She made her way through the Everfree Forest, ignoring the monsters that she occasionally came across. She had lived in the forest her entire life, and the monsters had become acclimated to her presence; none of them saw her as food, but she also wasn't on friendly terms with a lot of them. Still, the fact that they gave each other their distance was enough for Zecora to keep moving.

She finally made her way out of the forest and into Ponyville, past Fluttershy's meadow. The yellow Pegasus was nowhere to be seen, and from the look of things, her animals were starting to get hungry.

"Oh you poor little dears, you act as though you had not eaten in years. I will give you what you ask, but I do not think it a simple task. Fluttershy knows where she stores the food; without that knowledge, how will I do any good?"

The little white rabbit, Angel, tugged on Zecora's foreleg and pointed to the door of the cottage. Zecora followed him to the door and pushed on it; Fluttershy had left it unlocked – no doubt she had left in a hurry.

Angel led Zecora over to a closet in the kitchen. The closet was filled with all the animal food, Zecora could see that. But she had no idea what food went to what animal. She knew that the chickens got feed corn and Angel got carrots – Fluttershy had mentioned that they were his favorites – but other than that, she had no idea what she was doing.

Now that list taped to the door – that could prove useful. Zecora studied it carefully, learning what the sheep, hummingbirds, robins, deer, ferrets, beavers, cats, dogs, and the one flamingo all ate. She scratched her chin in thought.

"I do believe, my little furry friend, that you will not go hungry in the end."

She fed the animals, all the while humming a song in her native language – a language from a land far from Equestria. Zecora was not an Equestrian native; she had emigrated to this land long ago, and though she had begun to act according to Equestria's customs, she still maintained a connection to her home land. Her hut, built into a tree in the Everfree Forest, was decorated with tribal masks, each one for a different ceremony and having a different meaning attached to it; the shelves were lined with bottles of potions and books on how to cure any ailment or dispel any curse.

She had first met Twilight Sparkle and her friends shortly after Twilight moved to Ponyville. She knew that they had followed her – well, she knew that they were following Applejack's younger sister Apple Bloom, who was following Zecora – into the forest, and they ignored her warnings about the poison joke, a flower that inflicts ailments on unsuspecting ponies for the sake of a laugh. The ponies had all thought that Zecora had cursed them – someone had started spreading a rumor that Zecora was an "evil enchantress" who got her kicks cursing innocent ponies – but it wasn't until they had met Zecora at her hut that they learned the truth: Zecora was as innocent as a filly; she had tried to warn them about the poison joke, and knowing that they had stepped into it, was working on a potion to heal them.

And then there was the time Spike's draconic urges began to show themselves – in this case, his greed, his lust for precious items. Even though he tried to hold the urges back, he couldn't succeed, and he grew into a full-grown dragon, only being saved by his feelings for the unicorn Rarity.

It was odd, Spike – a young dragon – being in love with Rarity – a unicorn much older than him. In some ways, it was kind of cute, a young male having a crush on an older female, though Zecora wondered if Spike even knew what love was. Twilight Sparkle had said that she'd hatched him eleven years ago, as her entrance exam into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, and Rarity had to be in her late teens – early twenties, at the most.

Zecora finished feeding the animals, checking them off the list as she did. Fluttershy would be happy that someone had come by and fed them; do doubt she was busy and just had no time.

Zecora looked on the clock in the kitchen. It was four in the afternoon. Most of the shops in town would be preparing to close in an hour or so, and if Zecora wanted to get the things she needed for her herbal tea, she had to hurry. Fluttershy lived on the outskirts of Ponyville; it was a good ten minute walk into the center of town, and that was without taking traffic into account. In some ways, Zecora was glad that a few ponies still gave her some space – it meant that she didn't have to worry about as many ponies blocking the roads – but at the same time, it also made her upset, knowing that there were still a few ponies who didn't trust her, who probably still saw her as an evil enchantress from a far off land.

She was getting close to Sugar Cube Corner; she could smell the delicious scent of the baked goods coming from the bakery.

She could also hear the voices, before she saw the figures step through the door.

Twilight Sparkle and her friends, accompanied by six tall, hairless, primate-like creatures. Most of the creatures had pale skin with dark manes on their heads; one had darker skin. They all wore different clothing – one wore red, one wore yellow, one wore pink, one wore blue, one wore black, and one wore all white.

It took Zecora a few seconds, but she finally recognized these creatures for what they really were.

They were human beings.

Zecora had never encountered a human before, she'd only heard the stories and rumors. But to see them in person; it was like she was looking at an alien creature for the very first time. They were like tall chimpanzees, but at the same time, they were different than any ape she had ever seen. It was the way they moved – constantly walking upright, never dragging their knuckles, leaving their hands free – and the fact that they were capable of speech rather than hoots, hollers, and screeches.

"The first order of business is to get the kids home," the male in the red was saying. "And then we can begin to figure out the best defensive positions."

"What makes you so sure the fight will even come to Equestria?" Rarity asked.

"The Putties came to this place," the female in the yellow said. "So it makes sense that we might end up fighting here later on."

Zecora cleared her throat, catching their attention. The male in the black – the one with the dark skin – lurched backward in surprise.

"Whoa. Ninja zebra."

Zecora chuckled. "I am no ninja. And welcome to Equestria." She turned to Twilight. "Twilight Sparkle, you and your friends seem stressed. Could it be that the rift has caused you some duress?"

Twilight nodded. "You could say that. The time differences don't help."

Zecora cocked her head to one side, confused. "Time differences? What do you mean?"

"Two hours in Equestria is twelve hours on the other side," Twilight replied. "I know. It's weird."

"So Twilight," the female in the pink said, "who's the Doctor Seuss zebra?"

"I don't know who Doctor Seuss is, but this is our friend Zecora. Zecora, meet the Power Rangers – Jason, Tommy, Billy, Kimberly, Zack, and Trini. They're from the other side of the rift."

Zecora nodded her head; a kind greeting gesture. "A pleasure to meet you, Power Rangers. I wonder, have you come to keep our world from danger?"

"Something like that," Tommy answered. "At least, we hope so."

"Zecora, can you tell us anything about this rift?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Do you know some way to close it without having to get our hooves dirty? Because that Kronos guy is no pushover, let me tell you."

Zecora shook her head. "I know nothing of dimensional holes. I am sorry I cannot mend your woes. Perhaps you should consult with Princess Celestia; she may know of a way to help Equestria."

"We talked to Celestia earlier," Applejack said. "She was the one who told us to go over there and look for clues."

"That was before we knew what was really going on," Twilight put in. "Now we do. Zecora, you must know something. How to stop a god, if nothing else."

"Gods are unkillable beings," Zecora told them. "I am afraid you cannot stop this fiend."

"Wonderful," Rainbow Dash hissed under her breath.

Discord suddenly appeared in front of them. His hands were covered by plaid-patterned oven mitts; in the mitts, he was holding a large metal tray. The tray was dotted with several green balls, like Brussel sprouts.

"Saved them!" he cried. "Anypony want a spinach puff? Be careful; they're still hot."

Pinkie Pie leaped up and took three puffs off the tray, all in one mouthful. She barely chewed; just swallowed.

"That was good," she said. "Tasty, tas – uh oh."

"Are you okay, Pinkie Pie?" Trini asked.

Sweat began pouring down Pinkie's face, matting her mane and fur to her forehead. She puffed out her cheeks. Her face began to turn red. Her nose started running. Steam billowed from her ears.

"HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" As she screamed, fire came spewing out of her mouth.

"Watch it!" Jason yelled as they all ducked down, out of the way.

All except Discord, who materialized a fire extinguisher in his hands. He sprayed Pinkie in the face, cooling her off instantly.

"Wow. Those were really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really hot."

"Told ya." He held the tray out. "Anyone else?"

"I'm good," Zack said. "I don't feel like spitting fire."

"Eh, your loss, Black Ranger." He opened a pouch on his stomach and dumped the spinach puffs into it, before throwing the tray away like it was a Frisbee. "So, you were asking Zecora here how to close the rift?"

"We thought she might know something about it, yeah," Kimberly said.

Discord shook his head. "Always trying to find an easy way out. Look, I already told you, Kronos is the only one who can close the rift. You're wasting your time trying to get that kind of information out of Zecora." He turned to Zecora. "Nothing personal, Zeccy."

Zecora smiled and gave Discord a dismissive wave of her hoof. "There is no need to apologize. As for a solution, I can only surmise. Perhaps you can speak with Princess Celestia; she may know of a way to save Equestria."

"Unless she knows how to stop a god, I highly doubt that," Discord grumbled.

"It's worth a shot, at least," Jason said. "Where can we find your princess?"

"Canterlot, the capital city," Twilight replied. She turned to Zecora. "Thanks, Zecora. We'll see what Celestia has to say about this." Zecora nodded her head as they gathered together, ready to teleport to Canterlot.

Discord snapped his fingers, and in an instant, they were no longer in the fields of Ponyville. Instead, they found themselves in the middle of a lavish hallway, decorated with a long red carpet and several chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The walls were lined with an array of gorgeous stained-glass windows, each one telling a different story – the ponies fighting a dark blue alicorn in battle armor; Spike rescuing a city from an evil king; Twilight in heated battle with a centaur; there were so many other stories that the Power Rangers couldn't even begin to guess how they had happened, or if they were even true.

The marble was smooth, almost too smooth to have been carved by hand – or hoof, in this case. The masonry was perfect, like it had been manufactured in a factory rather than a stone quarry. The hall stretched on for several yards, the red carpet following the hall, until it reached a pair of large golden doors at the far end; two Pegasus guards were standing by the door, their faces stern in their helmets and golden armor. They eyed the humans warily, unsure if they were friend or foe.

"Where's the princess?" Kimberly asked.

Twilight jerked her head towards the doors. "Through there. She's probably busy, so we'll give her a few minutes. In the meantime, why don't we show you guys these windows."

"I like this one," Discord said. He was pointing to a window showing Twilight being crowned a princess. He placed a finger against the glass; the crown changed color, from bright gold to dull gray. "Nah. That's a bit too drab, isn't it?"

One of the Pegasus guards spoke up. "Princess Twilight Sparkle, is this a matter of importance?"

"I'm afraid so, sirs," Twilight said. "Please, if Celestia isn't too busy, we need to speak with her."

"One moment." The guard turned to the door, opened it and poked his head inside. A moment later, he removed himself from the room and turned back to Twilight and the others. "Princess Celestia will see you."

The guards opened the doors, signaling for them to enter. The Rangers' eyes grew wide with wonder as they took in the sights of the room. The red carpet stretched in here, as well, ending at a large golden throne, a small fountain of water on either side of the throne. The room itself was massive, nearly as large as the central atrium of the Command Center back home. There were two windows, one on either side – one window overlooked the city, a grand city made of marble and stone with cobblestone streets, trickling water fountains, and stone statues; the other window overlooked the statue garden, which housed some of the most impressive stone statues they had ever seen.

And standing near the throne, standing tall and proud and regal, was the most beautiful horse they had ever laid eyes upon. Her fur was pure white, even whiter than Rarity's fur. Her mane and tail – both of which were flowing as though they were in a river – were made up of lovely shades of blue, pink, and turquoise. A golden crown sat atop her head, behind her long, pointed unicorn horn. Her wings were spread wide in a regal manner, allowing them to get a look at what the other ponies had called a Cutie Mark – in this case, the sun, its shining rays going in multiple directions. A golden collar was around her neck, covering her neck and her chest. A warm, loving smile had spread across her face, the smile of a caring mother.

Twilight and her friends all kneeled down in front of the alicorn; the Rangers followed suit – it only seemed fitting that they bow before a princess, a royal figure.

Jason spoke up before anyone else could.

"Hello, Your Royal Highness," he said. "My name is Jason Scott. My friends and I have come a long way to speak with you."

"And who are your friends?" the princess asked calmly.

One by one, the other Power Rangers introduced themselves.

"Tommy Oliver."

"Trini Kwan."

"Billy Cranston."

"Zack Taylor."

"Kimberly Hart."

"It's an honor, Your Highness," the all said together.

Celestia nodded. "The honor is all mine. It's been a while since we've met humans." She paused. "You said you came a long way."

"In a sense, yes," Kimberly replied.

"You may all stand up now," Celestia said. "You don't have to continuously bow." The Rangers slowly, reluctantly stood up. They kept their eyes glued to the floor; it just felt unnatural to look a royal figure in the eye. It felt disrespectful.

Celestia must have sensed what they were all thinking. "You can look at me, you know," she said with a slight chuckle.

"Sorry," Jason said as they looked up at her. "We came from the world across the rift. We've been trying to figure out how to close it, and so far, we haven't come up with a solution. We also recently had an encounter with the being we believe is responsible, the god Kronos."

Celestia's smile faltered. "You've met Kronos?"

"We actually engaged him in battle," Billy said.

"And if you don't mind me saying, Princess, we got our asses whooped," Zack added.

"Zack!" Kimberly smacked him on the back of the head. "This is a princess we're talking to! Watch your language!"

Celestia couldn't help but laugh, warranting strange, confused looks from everyone. "I'm sorry; I shouldn't be laughing." She suddenly became serious. "So you say you've encountered Kronos?"

"And like Zack said, we got our butts kicked," Tommy said.

"He tried to turn Jason against the other Power Rangers," Pinkie Pie put in. "That was really mean of him."

Celestia turned to the humans. "Power Rangers?"

"Yes, Princess," Jason said. "That's the six of us. We were chosen by Zordon to fight the forces of evil. And we believe that Kronos has struck a deal with our enemy, Lord Zedd."

"This doesn't bode well at all," Celestia said as she turned away. "I've heard of this Lord Zedd. They say that everything he sees, he conquers. Of course, I've only heard legends and rumors. But now I guess that they're true. Is that why you've come to visit?"

"Actually, we talked with Zecora earlier," Rainbow Dash answered. "She said that you might have an answer. Said that you might know how to close the rift. Maybe you can get this Kronos fellow to listen to us? I don't know; it's just a guess."

"I'm not so sure I can get a god to listen to reason," Celestia said glumly. "They're the type where, once their minds have been made up, that's it – they never go back on what they decide. It's rare that they do." She was silent for a moment as she thought. "Did he happen to say why he was doing all of this?"

"He mentioned something about Equestria breaking the laws, or something like that," Twilight replied. "Honestly, there was so much happening that I don't think I heard him correctly. But he seemed to really not like this Zedd fellow."

Discord suddenly coughed; he shuddered. "Oh, sorry. Sudden imbalance."

"Magical imbalance?" Celestia asked. "What do you think it means, Discord?"

Discord jerked a thumb to the nearby window, the window overlooking the city. "Take a look outside. I think you'll find your answer."

They all headed over to the window, and there, standing atop the roof of a nearby building, his robe flowing in the wind, his arms crossed, his staff laid casually against his shoulder, was Kronos.


	11. A Battle With Kronos

A BATTLE WITH KRONOS

THEY HURRIED OUT ONTO THE BRIDGE SEPARATING THE MAIN PALACE FROM the castle suits, just as Kronos effortlessly and gracefully glided over to the bridge. He kept his smug face turned to them as they came through the doors. They stopped and glared at him. Jason's face contorted in anger and rage, the memories of what Kronos made him do just last night coming back to him. He clenched his fists, flared his nostrils, and snarled as he reached into his pocket for his Power Morpher.

Celestia put a hoof on his arm, stopping him from activating the device. "Jason, wait, there's something I must know." He stepped forward and bowed. "Kronos, God of Dimensions. You honor us with your presence."

"I am glad to see someone who knows how to respect a god," Kronos said. He returned Celestia's bow. "Princess Celestia. Radiant as always." He stood up straight. "You must understand, My Princess, that what I do now, merging dimensions, has nothing to do with you personally."

"Then why are you doing it, My Lord?" Celestia wondered.

"You have a beautiful land, Your Majesty, but that does not alter the fact that, for one reason or another, your world has violated the laws of the multiverse – laws I myself devised. You have allowed yourselves to join with other dimensions on multiple occasions, either through artificial or natural means. For that reason, I cannot allow this world to exist."

Celestia lowered her head. "I know that it probably means nothing, My Lord Kronos, but please, accept my deepest apologies for what we have done. We never meant to break any laws." She looked up at him. "Several times, we have had visitors from other worlds through artificial means – teleportation devices, Ground Bridge, magic. The last time we had visitors, it was via a natural nexus. Surely you cannot ignore the fact that only twice – once, when Twilight Sparkle and her friends went to help some of our human friends restore their world from darkness, and again when they went to visit the Autobots – have we willingly crossed dimensions."

Kronos nodded his head. "I understand. But I cannot forgive. We gods – we make laws for a reason. We make laws to govern, to rule, to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as we would like. When those laws are broken, we cannot ignore them. Just as you cannot ignore your own laws being broken. You have punishments for such occasions, and the same goes for me. Do you understand?"

Celestia hung her head. She knew that Kronos had a point. She had her laws – laws made to govern the land, to ensure the tranquility of her subjects. Her role as princess wasn't simply to raise the sun; it was to govern her land, it was to keep her subjects safe. And she did have punishments should any of her laws be broken. Oftentimes, the punishment was simple community service – a few days to a few months before they were released from custody – but there were times where a pony was subjected to imprisonment or, in the most extreme cases, banished from Equestria. She could only think of one time where she had to banish somepony, and that was a thousand years ago, when her sister became corrupted by hatred and jealousy and transformed into Nightmare Moon. Of course, there were other reasons to banish somepony – such as if that pony became a flesh-eater; it happened, though rarely.

She knew that Kronos had a point. He had his laws, and he had to enforce them in the best ways he knew possible. But still….

"My Lord, I know where you are coming from. I understand that you must enforce the laws that you have created." She looked back up at him. "But I ask that you understand that I cannot simply allow my world to suffer and die because of its transgressions." Kronos was visually taken aback, his eyes growing wide and taking a step back in shock. "I cannot sit back and watch my world, and another world that has no doubt not done anything wrong, be destroyed." She flared her wings; her horn began to glow with a bright yellow aura. "If I must fight you to preserve my beautiful land, then so be it!"

She fired a blast of magic directly at Kronos's heart. Kronos side-stepped out of the way, narrowly avoiding Celestia's attack.

"That blast would have been devastating, had I allowed it to make contact." He turned to Celestia. "My dear princess, you have just made a very grave mistake."

The Power Rangers quickly leaped in front of Celestia, Power Morphers held out in front of them.

Kronos chuckled. "Let me guess – it's morphing time, am I right?"

The Rangers glared at Kronos, before activating their Morphers.

"Tigerzord!"

"Mastodon!"

"Pterodactyl!"

"Triceratops!"

"Saber-Toothed Tiger!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

Their bodies flashed as they donned their Ranger suits, weapons in hand. Before Kronos could react, they charged.

Tommy made the first hit, the blade of his sword striking Kronos's body. Kronos staggered, before slashing at Tommy with his staff, knocking him back. Sparks flew from Tommy's Ranger outfit as he tumbled away.

Billy swing his lance at Kronos. Kronos ducked out of the way of the first swing; blocked the second; failed to deflect the third blow, directed at his feet. Kronos stumbled, tumbling to the floor. He quickly leaped to his feet, kicking Billy in the face. Billy quickly righted himself as Trini joined him, and they charged for Kronos together.

Kronos easily leaped out of the way. He swung his staff, hitting them both. Their suits sparked as they were knocked back.

Kimberly fired an arrow at Kronos; he easily deflected it. He charged at him and swung the bow. He dodged the first swing, but not the knee to the face. He staggered backwards, holding his nose, which was bleeding.

"No one makes me bleed my own blood," he hissed. "Especially not little girls in pink!"

"What are you going to do about it, bub?" Kimberly taunted.

"Kimberly no!" Twilight called over to her. "Taunting a god? Not a smart move!"

Kronos rushed at Kimberly before she could react. He grabbed her by the neck. She took an arrow and jammed it into his shoulder, making him release his grip. She swing the bow at Kronos. He grabbed the bow, pulled it back, and let it go. The bow smacked Kimberly in the face, allowing Kronos to kick her back.

Zack charged for him next, his ax in its rifle mode, firing away. Kronos deflected each blast and swung his staff, hitting Zack so hard he was thrown back against the outer walls of the palace.

He was so distracted hitting Zack that he never saw Jason approaching until Jason slashed him with his sword. He kept slashing, cutting into Kronos, slicing his robe, drawing blood.

"You…son…of…a…BITCH!" Jason screamed between swings.

Kronos caught Jason's sword as he prepared another swing. "Are you done yet, boy?" A simple kick sent Jason tumbling over the edge of the bridge.

"Alright, that's it!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "I'm not sitting back on my rump anymore!" She flew at Kronos at her top speed, her front hooves out in front of her. "YAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Rainbow! Don't!"

Rainbow Dash didn't hear a word Twilight said; she just continued to charge straight for Kronos, slamming into his gut, pushing him through the marble walls of the castle. They smashed through the other side. Rainbow Dash hurtled towards the ground, slamming Kronos into the cobblestone streets, leaving a human-sized crater in the middle of the road.

"That'll teach you to smack our friends around and threaten our worlds, you son of a mare!"

Kronos slowly climbed out of the crater, shaking dirt and dust off of his bloodied body. He turned to look up at Rainbow Dash, who was still hovering above him.

"Oh, you want some more? Well, bring it on, punk! I got plenty more where that came from! You ever been hit by a Sonic Rainboom? You will soon!"

Kronos reached up towards her. She was just out of reach, hovering at least twenty feet above him. But he wasn't reaching for her; he clenched his fist, and Rainbow Dash felt the pressure on her body growing, pressing down on her, pinning her wings to her body.

"Hey! What the buck?" She felt her muscles tightening, the pressure building on her bones. She screamed in agony.

Kronos flicked his wrist, sending Rainbow Dash careening against the wall of the castle. She left a Pegasus-shaped imprint on the marble wall, before collapsing to the ground.

"Ow!"

Kronos started making his way towards Rainbow Dash, his wounds healing as he walked. His limp quickly healed; the blood dried; the cuts and gashes closed up.

"Looks like you're going to be the first to die, my little pony."

Celestia dropped in front of him, blocking his path. She flared her wings. Her horn began to glow.

"You will not harm my subjects!" She blasted him point blank with her magic, sending him flying back. He slammed into the ground. Celestia kept blasting him, blast after blast meeting its mark. Kronos tried to stand up, but he was forced to his knees as Celestia continued her onslaught, slowly moving towards him as she fired one blast after another.

She stopped when she was less than thirty feet from Kronos. He was on his knees, holding his staff for support. Blood dripped down onto the street – Kronos's blood. He glared at Celestia, his breath coming in short burst as he tried to stay awake and keep from going into shock.

"You….You…."

"I will not ask for forgiveness, My Lord," Celestia said, her voice calm yet dripping with rage. "You harm my subjects; you harm their friends and allies; you threaten our worlds. And if I must, I will do everything in my power to stop you. I will protect my subjects, I will protect Equestria, as the Princess of the Sun! Do you understand? DO YOU!"

Twilight shuddered at the tone of Celestia's voice – not quite the Royal Canterlot Voice, but close to it. She'd never heard Celestia so angry before, not even when Twilight's "Want It Need It" spell got too out of hoof. But this – this was a side of Celestia that Twilight had never seen before.

It actually scared her.

Kronos slowly stood up. His wounds closed. He flexed his neck muscles.

"My dear, beautiful Princess Celestia, your efforts to protect the young ones are valiant and admirable, indeed. However, for your personal transgressions against me, I cannot allow you to live." He thrust his hand forward.

Celestia felt her throat tightening. Every time she tried to breathe, the pressure built.

"Kronos is trying to choke her!" Twilight gasped. She leaped off the bridge. "Get away from her, you bastard!" She slammed her front hooves into Kronos's chest, knocking him flat. She planted her hooves on top of him, reared up, and brought her front hooves down onto his chest. As she did, she fired a blast of magic right into his face, causing him to cry out in agony.

"Get off of me, you rat!" He slapped Twilight off of him, sending her flying into a concrete pillar. Slowly, he stood up, his wounds healing.

Twilight stood up, her four legs shaking with adrenaline. She saw everyone else from the corner of her eye, saw them ready to join her, to help her.

The look in her eyes told them to go no further. "He's mine," she hissed, her voice dripping with rage.

 _That is one brave little pony,_ Trini thought.

Kimberly hurried over to Celestia, joined by Rarity and Fluttershy. "Princess Celestia! Are you okay?"

Celestia took a few deep breaths, trying to get the oxygen flowing through her body again. "Yes, my dear. I'm fine. But I'm more worried about Twilight."

"I don't think you have to worry about that one," Billy said. "It looks like she can handle herself."

Twilight flew at Kronos. She dodged out of the way of his staff as he swung, circling around to hit him from behind. Her horn dug into his spine as she pushed him forward, slamming him through the same concrete pillar she had collided with. She pushed him away from her; he slammed into the ground, and she landed on top of him, all four hooves hitting him as hard as she could make them.

"NO ONE…HURTS…MY…FRIENDS…LIKE…THAT!" Kronos pushed her off of him and rolled over onto his back, his face contorted in pain and agony. "I don't care if you're a god or not! I WILL protect my friends! You got that, you son of a mare?"

Kronos stood up. His wounds may have healed, but he still felt the pain. He took several ragged breaths before speaking, his teeth gritted in anger.

"I AM a god, you petulant whelp! I could destroy you – I could destroy this whole world – with a single thought if I wanted to."

"As far as I know, there's only one God. And the last time I read the Bible, I didn't see any mention of him being a dick like you."

Neither of them had heard the others arrive. Not until Jason spoke up. The Power Rangers had their weapons at the ready; the other ponies scraped at the ground with their hooves, wings flared and horns glowing –

Except for Fluttershy, who was hanging back, low to the ground, her bright baby-pink mane covering her face.

Kronos chuckled at Jason's remark. "I know the one you're talking about. And you're right. He's far too nice for His own good."

Jason rolled his eyes and turned to the other Power Rangers, who all had their weapons ready. It was as if they knew what he was thinking. Not that that would surprise him; they had done this enough to know what each other was thinking, enough to know when it was time to end a battle.

"I don't know about the rest of you," he said, "but I'm ready to put this guy out of our misery. What do you say? Should we bring our weapons together?"

"Let's do it!"

"What are they doing?" Rainbow Dash asked.

They watched as the Rangers brought their weapons together to form some sort of crossbow.

"Ready! Aim! Fire!"

"Blast him, Saba!"

A multicolored beam shot out of the crossbow, while Saba fired his laser-eye beams. Both beams were directed at Kronos. He put up his hands, holding the beams back. The beams began to push him backward. He dug his heels into the street, straining to keep from being vaporized.

"They're going to do it!" Rarity cheered. "They're going to beat him!"

"Oh no, how can this be?" Kronos cried in an almost mocking manner. "The mighty Kronos, the god of dimensions, beaten by children!" A smile spread across his face as he chuckled. "Oh, just joking." He threw the beams aside, so that they hit the concrete pillars holding a bridge aloft, causing the bridge to crumble to the ground.

"You have got to be KIDDING ME!" Tommy shouted.

"You poor, simple fools," Kronos growled. "Did you really think such a simple attack would be enough to defeat me? I am Kronos! I am the God of Dimensions!" He raised his staff above his head and started spinning it. "And now….SUBMIT!"

He slammed his staff into the ground. The ground began to tremble. Shingles fell off of the roofs, and glass shattered as the buildings shook. A part of the palace tower crumbled, collapsing and falling to the ground.

"EARTHQUAKE!" Fluttershy gasped.

"Everyone take cover!" Jason yelled.

They hid under whatever door frame or café table they could, making sure to stay out of the way of the falling debris as at least one building collapsed into dust. The sound of ponies screaming in pain and fear echoed through the air.

"Kronos, that's enough!" Celestia bellowed. "Stop ruining my city!"

"You brought this upon yourself, Your Majesty," Kronos growled.

"Okay, buck this!" Rainbow Dash hissed. She flew out of her hiding place beneath the table of an outdoor café, front hooves extended out in front of her.

She slammed into Kronos, throwing him off balance and instantly stopping the earthquake.

"Force him to the rift!" Celestia called. "If we can get him to close the rift on himself, then maybe we can destroy him!"

"It's worth a shot," Jason agreed. "You heard the princess, guys! Let's do it! CHARGE!"

They charged at Kronos as he stood up from the ground. He watched as they approached.

"Come at me, then."

Applejack hit him first, bucking him hard in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain, gasping for breath, which allowed Tommy to uppercut him. Rarity caught Kronos with her magic, which she used to slam him into the ground – once, twice, three times – before throwing him over to Trini, who kicked him as hard as she could.

Kimberly shot him with an arrow. As he tried to pull it out of his shoulder, Fluttershy galloped up to him and gave him a hard shove – about as hard a shove as she could manage, which was no more than a gentle tap.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't hurt you too much, did I?" Kronos responded by kicking her away as hard as he could.

"FLUTTERSHY!" Zack shouted. "YOU SON OF A BITCH!" He started hitting Kronos with his ax, blow after blow meeting its mark. He kicked Kronos back, before turning and hurrying over to Fluttershy's inert form. "Fluttershy, are you okay?"

Fluttershy slowly picked herself up off the ground. "Ouch. I think I'm okay, Zack. But that hurt so much."

Zack ran a hand through her pink mane. "I'm just glad you're okay. That blow could have been a lot worse."

Twilight and Celestia took turns blasting Kronos with their magic, forcing him to step back. Twilight charged forward and dug her horn into Kronos's stomach, while Celestia jammed her horn into his neck. They fired their magic, knocking him back, before shaking their heads, flinging the blood off of their horns. Before Kronos's wounds could hear, Billy hit him over the head with his lance, and Pinkie Pie blasted him with a cannon that she materialized from nowhere – a cannon that shot out confetti and streamers rather than cannonballs.

Tommy slashed Kronos across the chest with Saba's blade, before punching him in the throat and kicking him back.

"We're almost at the rift, guys!" Jason cried out. "A little bit more!" He cut into Kronos with his sword.

By this point they had forced Kronos to the rift. He stood up, his wounds closing and healing, his broken bones rearranging themselves. A wicked smile crossed his face.

This battle was not over yet.


	12. The Rift is Closed

THE RIFT IS CLOSED

THE TWO PARTIES FACED EACH OTHER, STANDING LESS THAN A HUNDRED yards from the rift, breathing heavily from the exertion and the wounds they'd sustained. They were exhausted, wounded, but neither party was willing to give in, not just yet. The Power Rangers tightened their grip on their weapons, while the ponies scraped at the ground with their hooves, wings flared and horns glowing. Kronos spun his staff.

Neither party moved; they were waiting for someone to make the first move.

Kimberly's fingers twitched, causing her to lose her grip on her bowstring, launching her arrow. Kronos caught the arrow and snapped it in half.

"A wasted effort, young one."

"Oh, give it a rest," Applejack huffed.

Jason charged forward, slamming his shoulder into Kronos. Kronos grabbed his arm, spun, and threw him over the rift.

########################

Angel Grove News reporter Donna LaCroix and her crew had been here for the past three hours. She didn't know what they were supposed to see, outside of this shimmering little hamlet. Why her producers had sent her and her camera crew out here for the third time in less than two days was beyond her. Maybe they were hoping that a reason for this village being here would reveal itself?

No, that couldn't be it. She worked for the local news, so chances were that the producers just wanted her to reiterate the same thing she'd said last time – no new developments. Even though she worked for a news station, that was one thing she hated about the mainstream media – its tendency to talk about the exact same thing for a week straight, sometimes longer. When it was revealed that Lance Armstrong had been caught using performance enhancing drugs, they went on about it for almost a month rather than moving on to something else.

"Hey Donna, I think I see something moving on the other side."

Donna stopped rubbing her arms – she had been trying to keep them warm from the chilly night air – and grabbed her microphone. She signaled one of the tech guys to notify the main office that they had some activity, and that they were about to report on it.

"Okay, Donna, producers say we're good to go. In five, four, three, two, one, go ahead."

Donna silently cleared her throat. "This is Donna LaCroix, reporting live from downtown Angel Grove, where we have been keeping an eye on this mysterious village that just appeared out of thin air after yesterday morning's earthquake. For the longest time, nothing was happening, but now it appears that we have movement."

No sooner had she finished her sentence did something come flying towards them, slamming into the news van.

"Oh my god, is that the Red Power Ranger?"

Donna and her camera man hurried over to him. She held the microphone out to the Ranger as he slowly stood up on shaking legs.

"Red Ranger, are you okay?"

"Just having an off day," the Red Ranger replied, gritting his teeth in pain – at least, that was what it sounded like; the Rangers' helmets made it impossible to tell what emotion they were conveying.

Another figure approached, this one a tall man dressed in a fancy robe and carrying a wicked-looking staff tipped with a curved blade. He turned his attention to Donna and the news crew.

"The rabid media congregates. I should have suspected as much."

"Are you getting this?" Donna whispered to her camera man.

"Yeah. That guy looks like he means business."

The Red Ranger stepped in front of them, his weapon ready. "Get back! He won't hesitate to hurt any of you!"

"Red Ranger, who is this guy?" Donna asked.

"He said his name's Kronos. He calls himself the God of Dimensions. He's merged our dimension with another, hoping to destroy them both, because I guess he made a deal with Lord Zedd."

"You left out the fact that Equestria – "

"If you're going to harp about your laws being broken again, then I'm going to have to tell you to shut up right now!" He charged.

############################

Kronos blocked Jason's attacks, not once losing his ground. Jason's sword slammed into Kronos's staff; he was hoping to break it, so Kronos couldn't use it anymore.

He also had to worry about the news crew. If Kronos decided to attack them, they wouldn't last long. He had to protect them, had to keep them safe.

They locked weapons. Jason turned, looking over his shoulder at the news crew.

"What are you just standing there for? Stop filming this and get the hell out of here! Now! Before he decides to destroy you!" Kronos kicked him back. He held his chest, trying to dull the pain. "What are you waiting for? Get going!"

"You know that they won't, boy," Kronos said as he advanced. "They have to stay and record all of this. That's what they do. All they care about is getting the story, even if it costs them their lives." He raised a hand at the news crew. "And in this case, it most certainly shall cost them their pitiful, pathetic, futile little lives."

A searing pain raked his body as a yellow beam hit him from above.

"Princess Celestia!"

Celestia landed between Kronos and the news crew. She flared her wings and scraped at the ground as her horn continued to glow.

############################

Donna and her camera man watched in awe as that tall, white, flying unicorn hit that Kronos character with some sort of powerful laser beam, even though the laser seemed like it did no damage.

The horse landed in front of them, wings flared, horn glowing, hoof scraping the ground. It turned to look at them, and it spoke, its female voice calm yet dripping with anger and rage.

"You'd better get to cover. This is bound to get even uglier than it already has."

"Hey, Donna, did that horse just talk?" her camera man asked.

"This is getting weird," Donna mumbled. "Look, the other Power Rangers have arrived!" She began talking into her microphone – they were still on the air, after all. "It looks as though the other Power Rangers have arrived to engage this Kronos fellow in battle, and they've brought….Battle steeds? I don't know, I've never seen horses like that before. Same with this white one that seems like it came out of nowhere."

The Power Rangers charged for Kronos, their equine companions joining them.

####################################

Their initial attacks were easily deflected. They picked themselves up off the ground and got ready to charge again.

"Go ahead, try to attack me again," Kronos taunted. "You may have had the upper hand earlier, but I assure you it will not – wait, someone is missing. Where's the draconequus?"

"Hey, that's a good question," Kimberly said. "I haven't seen Discord since before the fight started. Where is he?"

Discord suddenly appeared, warping into existence in front of them. He stretched his arms, legs, tail, wings, and neck.

"Why didn't anyone tell me you were slapping him around? I would have put my nap on hold for that, you know."

"You were NAPPING?!" Twilight screamed.

They heard the news crew scream in fear and shock. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING?!"

Discord groaned and rolled his eyes. "Humans. Don't they know anything? Anyway." He turned to Kronos and cracked his knuckles. Cracking his knuckles caused a nearby street lamp to come to life. The lamp lunged for Kronos, hitting him hard alongside the head. Blood trickled down Kronos's temple. He pressed his fingers against the wound and looked at the blood on his fingers.

He glared at Discord, before licking the blood off of his fingers.

"That's disgusting," Discord said flatly.

"How utterly repulsive!" Rarity gagged.

Pinkie Pie tossed a cake at Kronos. It splattered against his face. Icing and sticky dough dribbled down his face. He wiped the cake off, before adjusting his grip on his staff.

"I believe I've prolonged our game for long enough," he said. "You have gotten the upper hand – or in some cases, the upper hoof – on me a number of times, but I can assure you that it will never happen again. This time, you all simply die."

"Not this time, pal," Rainbow Dash hissed. She flew at him at her top speed, flying so fast that, just before she hit him, she shattered the sound barrier as well as the visible light spectrum – she'd performed a Sonic Rainboom.

Kronos felt the impact of the Pegasus travelling at over ten times the speed of sound as she slammed into him, knocking him back, propelling him through the city. Car alarms blared, glass shattered, people screamed and ran for cover as they zoomed down the street, the rainbow trail extending behind Rainbow Dash.

Were Kronos a mortal being, Rainbow Dash's attack would have completely obliterated him, shattering his bones and his internal organs, leaving him no more than a bloody stain on the ground. But as an immortal deity, he could survive a hit like this. Though it didn't come without the pain. He felt her front hooves digging into his flesh, pressing into his stomach, felt the pressure on his back as Rainbow Dash increased her speed, until she slammed him into the wall of a sturdy brick building. He tumbled through the wall into a large, metal room, lined with shelves upon shelves of burlap sacks and metal boxes.

He recognized the room as a bank vault.

Rainbow Dash flapped into the room with him. She flared her wings and scraped at the ground with her hoof. Snorted. Glared at him, her eyes burning with a sort of anger and ferocity that made Kronos chuckle.

"I admire your spirit, my little pony," he said as his wounds healed themselves. "Unfortunately, that is not enough for me to allow you to live."

"Stuff it, pal. By the time I'm done with you, you'll be crying home to Mommy." She started galloping towards him. "YAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

A swift kick from Kronos sent her flying against one of the shelves. Bags and boxes fell down on top of her, burying her. Money was strewn everywhere, bills and coins littering the floor.

 _I've wasted enough time with this little pest_ , he thought. _I'm not sure if that blow was enough to kill her, but perhaps being buried under all of that will. But for now…._

He teleported back to the rift, just as the Rangers and their pony companions were trying to push the news crew away.

"The Pegasus will not be joining you," he snarled. "But soon, all of you will be joining her in the next life."

####################################

Rainbow Dash's head hurt. No, not her head, her back – her sides, her legs, her wings, even her mane and tail hurt. Every single inch of her body was screaming in pain as she tried to dig her way out of the pile of bags, boxes, and strange silver bits and green paper that she was buried under. Kronos's kick had been painful – she felt at least two ribs had been cracked, possibly broken, but she wasn't sure – but not enough to do her in. Not even being buried could finish her off; she'd been known to smash through solid rock mountains and come out with little more than a mild headache.

But that was when she was in top shape. Now, she was exhausted, pushed to her limits, running on less than three hours sleep with very little fuel in her system – a few cupcakes and muffins and maybe a sip or two of a milkshake, thanks to their visit to Sugar Cube Corner. She could feel her body slowing, felt her muscles trying to lock up, to force her to stop and rest. But she couldn't. She'd cleared enough of the pile to see that Kronos was gone – no doubt gone back to fight everypony else – and if she didn't get there in time….She didn't even want to think about what might happen.

All she knew was that she had to get there. Her friends were counting on her. As the Spirit of Loyalty, she couldn't let them down.

She refused to let them down.

But before that, she had another problem to deal with – the humans currently aiming their weapons at her.

"Uh, chief? It's just a blue horse with wings."

"A Pegasus? You've got to be kidding."

"What about the other guy?"

"Someone check the surveillance footage; maybe that can tell us something."

One of the humans – Rainbow Dash guessed that they were part of the local law enforcement – put his gun in its holster and knelt down next to Rainbow Dash. He reached a hand out to her. She stepped back, winced in pain as his fingers touched her neck.

"It's okay, little horsie," he said, trying to keep a soothing tone to his voice. "We're not going to hurt you. Do you need a vet? You look pretty banged up."

Rainbow Dash winced in pain again; gritted her teeth as she felt the twang of agony in her side.

"You guys got any aspirin? Like, thirty aspirin? Maybe some painkillers?"

The cops all leaped back in shock, jaws dropped, guns aimed right at her.

"What the hell is that?"

"That horse just talked!"

"That's not right! I'm telling you, that is not right!"

Rainbow Dash winced as a new wave of pain went down her spine, into her legs and wings. "I'll take that as a no. Well, gotta fly." She took off through the hole, flying as fast as she could, trying her hardest to ignore the pain flowing through her body.

###################################

"It looks like the Power Rangers and their pony companions are on their last legs!" Donna reported as she and her crew watched the battle unfold. The Rangers and the ponies had been charging at Kronos – some from the front, some trying to flank him – and every time, he managed to counter them, knocking them back, striking them with his staff. He had grabbed the little white unicorn by her horn and thrown her against a nearby truck. At least the blow hadn't killed her, but it did look very painful. That strange creature tried to get in on the action as well, but only managed to claw Kronos on the face before being incapacitated. "I'm not sure how much longer they can last!"

They heard a loud _thump_ against the roof of the van; turned to look up; saw the little blue Pegasus standing on the vehicle.

"Hey! Kronos! Yeah, I'm talking to you, you feather brain!"

"You live?" Kronos asked incredulously.

"Yeah, I live." She winced in pain. "And you are in for a world of hurt, pal!" She flew towards Kronos.

Kronos grabbed her front hooves, holding her back.

"Not this time." He threw her against the White Ranger, sending them both tumbling to the ground.

They slowly climbed to their feet. Donna and her crew didn't have to see the Rangers' faces to know that they were exhausted, breathing heavily as they tried to reserve what energy they had left.

"What's the matter, everyone? Do you need a respite?" Kronos taunted. "Fine, then. Five minutes."

"They can take a break," the strange creature said. "In the meantime, I think I'll get my hands dirty. Bring it on, motherbucker."

################################

They all sat in a circle, trying to catch their breath. They were exhausted, worn down, on their last legs. Their muscles were twitching, their mouths were dry, they were bleeding, battered and bruised, and even though it was because his wounds had healed, it looked as though they hadn't done any damage to Kronos, who was currently fighting with Discord. They took a glance, saw Discord materialize a metal baseball bat to bash Kronos over the head. It broke in half upon contact with Kronos's cranium.

"Okay," Trini panted. "We were doing fine a little while ago. So, at what point did we lose control here?"

"That's a good question, Trini," Applejack said. She turned to Fluttershy, who earlier had taken a pretty nasty blow to the face. "How're ya holdin' up, sugar cube?"

"My muzzle still hurts," Fluttershy whimpered as she rubbed her snout with a hoof, trying to dull the pain.

"I know it hurts, Fluttershy. We're all a little banged up. But we can worry 'bout patchin' ourselves up later. Right now, we gotta figure out what to do about this Kronos feller." She turned to everyone else. "Anypony got any suggestions?"

"We can rush him again," Rainbow Dash suggested.

"Oh, sure, great plan," Rarity snarked. "Except the last time we did that, I nearly got my horn ripped off, AND I GOT THROWN AGAINST A VEHICLE! I won't be able to lay on my back for a month!"

"The first thing we need to worry about is getting that news crew out of here," Jason said. "They've stayed out of the way for now, but soon they're going to end up getting caught in the crossfire. We can't let that happen. So we have to get them somewhere safe."

"How about back to the main office?" Tommy suggested. "It's only about ten blocks from here."

"I can get them there and be back here in less than thirty seconds," Twilight said. "Problem is, I usually have to know where I'm going when I teleport."

"Just focus on the closest news station and you should be fine," Zack replied, patting her gently on the neck. "We can handle Kronos in the meantime."

"I don't know about that," Celestia put in. "Discord looks like he's having some trouble."

They all glanced over to Discord, who was currently on the ground, Kronos stomping his boot onto Discord's head.

"We've got another problem," Billy pointed out. "We've been morphed for quite a while now. I don't even know how much energy we have left before we're forced back to our regular selves."

"But if you had to guess?" Jason pressed.

"Ten minutes," Billy replied. "Fifteen, at the most."

"So we have – let's just say – ten minutes to end this fight," Jason figured. "I don't know if it's enough time."

"Yesterday, you told me about your assault vehicles, these Zords," Twilight said. "Why not just use them?"

Kimberly shook her head. "Right now, that's out of the question. Zordon told us to never escalate a battle unless we had no other choice. I think we can hold off on the Zords for a little while longer."

"Kimberly's right," Jason agreed. "Using the Zords now would violate the Ranger Code. Zordon would be pissed."

They all turned to Discord, who cried out as Kronos started slamming his face into the side of a nearby apartment complex.

"I…could…use…some…help…o…ver…here!"

"Oh, yeah, and Discord needs some help," Rainbow Dash said.

"Okay, so as Twilight's getting the news crew to safety, the rest of us will take Kronos," Jason said.

Rarity raised a hoof. "Will this involve us _not_ getting thrown around?"

"I certainly hope so," Jason said in a hushed voice. "We should be fine, as long as we take him together. Once we've worn him down enough, we'll give the Power Blaster one more shot. And if that doesn't work…." He took a deep breath. "If that doesn't work, then we'll have no choice but to call the Zords."

"Sounds like a plan," Tommy said.

"Everyone ready?" Jason asked. He was answered by everyone nodding their heads. "Good. Then let's do it!"

Twilight galloped over to the news crew. "Don't ask any questions, just stay still!" she cried as she tapped into her magic. A second later, they were in the middle of a large room filled with cameras; a small desk in the center of the room, with two newscasters sitting behind it. "Stay here. You'll be safe." She quickly warped back to the rift, just as everyone began their charge.

A charge that didn't last long as, with one swing of his staff, everyone was thrown back.

Kronos returned his attention to Discord. He took a small, gourd-shaped bottle off of his belt.

"Discord, Master of Chaos, your power is mine!" He uncorked the bottle and held it out towards Discord.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" Discord gasped as he felt himself growing weaker. He could see the color fading from his skin as a black mist – his chaotic powers – flowed from his body and into Kronos's bottle. He gritted his teeth in agony; having one's power taken from them was a painful experience.

The bottle quickly filled, almost overfilling with Discord's powers. Kronos quickly replaced the cap and looked at the contents.

"Such power. I knew you had a lot, but never this much."

"Why you…." Discord growled. He snapped his fingers, expecting Kronos to burst into flame, or melt into a puddle of ooze. But instead, nothing happened. Kronos just stood there, laughing at Discord.

"Your powers belong to me now, Discord," Kronos said. He put the tip of his staff against Discord's face. "And now, I will take more than your powers – I will take your life."

"NO!" Fluttershy screamed. She galloped towards them as fast as she could. "You can't! I won't let you!" She leaped at Kronos, tackling him to the ground. They rolled and tumbled. Fluttershy smacked her front hooves against Kronos's face.

Kronos threw Fluttershy off of him. "You wish to be first, little one? Fine, then. Consider your wish granted." He raised his staff.

Fluttershy shrunk back, realizing that she had just made a terrible mistake. "Oh my."

Billy slammed his shoulder into Kronos, knocking him off balance. He followed up with a hit from his lance. Before Kronos could retaliate, Celestia and Twilight charged at him, slamming their heads against his body, pushing him back against a nearby van, Twilight's horn digging into his stomach, Celestia's horn digging into his throat. He gurgled as his blood oozed out. Celestia and Twilight blinked, trying to keep the blood out of their eyes.

They pulled their horns out of Kronos and shook their heads, flinging blood everywhere. Kronos held a hand against his throat, trying to stop the bleeding as he waited for his wounds to heal, which took less than ten seconds. He flexed his neck muscles and rubbed the area where Twilight had stabbed him with her horn.

"I'm getting tired of this." A wave of his staff created a huge gust of wind, which sent them flying back. Twilight flared her wings, catching herself; Celestia tumbled through the rift.

Kronos waved his staff again. Jason dodged out of the way of the energy wave. The other Rangers weren't so lucky; they were hit, knocked back, through the rift. Another wave of his staff knocked the other ponies through the rift; Twilight and Discord were the only ones to avoid the attack.

 _Hang on,_ Kronos thought. _I am the only one who can create or destroy these rifts. And if a majority of the Power Rangers are in Equestria, then Zedd will have nothing to worry about._ He turned to Jason. "Red Ranger! You wanted me to close the rift? Well, consider your wish granted!" He slammed the bottom of his staff into the ground.

The rift began to shrink, the shimmering image of Equestria slowly disappearing.

"Wait!" Jason cried. "My friends are still over there! Twilight and Discord have to get back to their friends! Kronos, stop!" He ran for the still-shrinking rift as fast as he could.

He was too late; the rift closed before he reached it, the image of Equestria being replaced by the rest of Angel Grove.

"NO!"

"I don't see why you're so upset," Kronos said, his tone mocking. "I did as you asked. Is that not what you wanted; for me to close the rift?"

"Not with his friends on the other side," Twilight huffed. "Not with Discord and I here."

"Your magical abilities are second to none, Princess Twilight Sparkle," Kronos said. "I'm sure you can simply conjure up a spell to swap a few people."

"You stole Discord's powers, and my magic is nowhere near that level right now."

"Oh well. There is nothing I can do about that." He turned to leave. "Now, if you will excuse me, I've done as you asked, so there is no more need for me to –"

"YOU BASTARD!"

He turned around, just in time to see Jason rushing at him, his sword in his hands. Before Kronos could react, he felt Jason's sword hit him in the gut. He gasped as his blood and internal organs leaked out onto the ground. Cried out as Jason slashed his back. Drew in a deep, painful breath as Jason stabbed him through the heart, ripped the sword out, and sliced Kronos down the center.

Were he a normal mortal, that first blow would have been enough to kill him. But Kronos was no mortal; he was a god. His wounds began to heal themselves, his internal organs returning to their rightful home as his gashes closed up, his blood dried. He glared at Jason, his teeth gritted in pain and agony – his wounds may have healed, but he still felt as though Jason had his sword through his heart.

Jason tossed the sword aside. He grabbed Kronos by the neck and threw him against a parked truck. Kronos tried to get up, but Jason stopped him, kicking him in the face.

"Bring them back!" he bellowed. He punched Kronos several times; slammed Kronos's head into the ground. "Bring them back right now, god damn it!" He lifted Kronos up and slammed his forehead against Kronos, dazing him even further. Jason followed up with a series of devastating punches to Kronos's face, drawing blood from his nose and mouth, shattering Kronos's nose and cheek bones. "Bring! My! Friends! Back! Right! Now!"

"Jason, that's enough!" Twilight called. "You're going to kill him before he can do anything! Jason, stop!"

Jason wasn't listening; he was too focused on causing as much damage to Kronos as possible. He had never been so angry, so full of rage, so pissed off before. It took so much to get Jason angry – his martial arts training, which he'd been taking since he was old enough to walk and speak coherently – had taught him discipline, taught him to keep his emotions in check, to never let his anger get the better of him. But now, with his friends gone, trapped in a world they knew very little about, a world in which they didn't belong….One way to get him angry was to harm his friends in any way, and now that Kronos had essentially banished them from this world, Jason's anger had taken control. He let it take control, let the anger and the rage consume him as he continued to beat Kronos.

He threw Kronos against the steel rails of a fire escape ladder. Kronos's mouth was agape, but the only sound coming from it were short, ragged breaths.

Jason stormed towards Kronos. He could feel Kronos's blood drying on his hands; he could hear his blood pounding in his ears. His heart was racing, his eyes were narrowed, his breath had grown shallow.

It was the first time that Jason had been ready to beat someone until they were unconscious.

No, it was the first time that Jason was ready to kill.

Twilight activated her magic, stopping Jason in his tracks. "That's enough, Jason! Killing Kronos won't bring your friends back! It won't help anypony! Think about it!"

"Let me go, Twilight!"

"Jason, listen to me! This won't solve anything! Think about it! Think about what your friends would say! Would the other Power Rangers let you kill him?"

"They would if they knew why I did it!"  
"Listen to yourself! This isn't you! I know this isn't you! This isn't the Red Ranger I was told about! I was told that you were not a blood thirsty killer! You don't kill, Jason! The other Power Rangers told me so! Please, listen to me! You have to stop this! You can't kill him, Jason! You just can't!"

"Saved by a purple pony princess," Kronos chuckled as he stood up. "I'm grateful, Twilight Sparkle. Now, if you'll excuse me, I believe I shall take my leave. Farewell." With that, he vanished.

"NO! GET BACK HERE, DAMN IT! I'M NOT FINISHED WITH YOU!"

"Yes you are!" Twilight yelled. She activated her teleportation spell, instantly sending them to the main atrium of the Command Center. Once they'd arrived, she turned off her magic, releasing Jason, who took off his helmet, threw it against the wall, and collapsed to his knees, his fist repeatedly slamming the hard floor.

"No! No no no no no! They're gone! I couldn't save them! And now they're gone!"

Twilight turned to look up at Zordon, who returned her look – a solemn look of sadness. They were both feeling sorry for Jason, but right now, they knew better than to bother him.

Twilight would have to wait until his anger subsided to be able to speak with him.

 _Then again, he may never calm down._


	13. Zedd's Fury

ZEDD'S FURY

ZEDD WAS SITTING ON HIS THRONE, WAITING IMPATIENTLY FOR KRONOS TO return. He'd been watching the battle from his lunar fortress; it surprised him that Kronos had been hurt several times over, yet still managed to come out victorious.

Then again, it was perhaps a victory only in Kronos's eyes. From Zedd's point of view, Kronos had failed to do as he had promised. Zedd was told that Kronos would destroy the Power Rangers, and what did he do instead? Banish them to that other wretched world. That was not what Kronos had promised.

Zedd stood up and started pacing. He was growing more and more impatient by the second. When was Kronos going to return?

A beam of light pierced the chamber as Kronos arrived. He flexed his neck, loosening up the stiff muscles.

"That went well."

Zedd instantly rushed over to him. "You lying fool!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"You lied to me, Kronos. You told me that you would destroy the Power Rangers! That was what you meant when you said that you would solve my problem with them! I know it was! But you didn't, did you? No, you banished them! That's not destroying them! They still live! Even worse, you left one in this world!"

"I am going to have to stop you right there, Zedd," Kronos growled. "First off, I have no recollection of saying that I would kill the Power Rangers. If I had killed them, then fine. But I never said anything of the sort. Second, I am certain that even you should be able to handle one human child. If you can't, then I'd say that all the rumors I've heard about you are indeed true."

"What rumors?" Zedd demanded. "Answer me!"

Kronos stepped around Zedd, made his way to the throne and sat down. He crossed his legs, leaned forward, resting his chin in his hand.

"Are you sure you want to know? You're angry enough as it is. But, if you insist." He leaned back in the seat. "Word through the cosmos is that you have fallen into the exact same pattern as the sorceress, Rita Repulsa."

"WHAT?!" Zedd bellowed. His body began to glow red, a sign of his fury. "Who dares to say that to the great Lord Zedd?!"

"If you must know," Kronos replied, a smug smile growing on his face. "I dare."

"You?"

"You think that just because I watch over every dimension in every universe, I do not notice little things like this? Let's face it, Zedd, you're becoming just like Rita. Isn't this why you banished her in the first place, because she was constantly getting beaten by infants? You said it yourself – she was not fit to destroy a cockroach. But to be fair, she had at least a couple of victories over the Power Rangers. Granted, most of those victories was when Tommy was her evil Green Ranger, but victories are victories. She disabled – no, nearly destroyed – the Megazord, cut the Rangers off from Zordon, and even after that, there were times where she came dangerously close to destroying them. Now, let us compare Rita to you, shall we? The only victory you have under your belt is eliminating Tommy's Green Ranger powers. But one victory does not negate loss after loss. You blame your minions for the failures – Goldar, the Putties, even Squatt and Baboo. What, you think I'm not aware of those two watching us, providing color commentary as though this were a stage production? And Finster – poor, poor Finster, relegated to the status of scullery maid. His monsters may have constantly been killed, but his loyalty to his Empress was second to none."

He stood up and stretched his arms. "But back to the subject at hand, Zedd. Every time you send a monster out to combat the Rangers, they kill it. Every time you seem like you have gained the upper hand, they devise a way to work around it. Pirantishead disables the Dinozords? Zordon reconfigures them into the Thunderzords. You destroy the Green Rangers powers? Zordon creates the White Ranger powers. You split the Power Rangers apart, turn them against each other? They regroup and become stronger than ever. You banished Rita because she constantly failed you, and yet here you are, failing time after time after time, just like Rita. Oh, and did you know that Rita is currently on her way back here? She landed on Earth, and the Power Rangers sent her back. She should be here within the month, if that. You're supposed to be the Emperor of Evil, Emperor of All You See, and yet, you cannot kill six human children. You have become the laughingstock of the United Alliance of Evil. You are even worse than the space pirate Divatox." He stopped talking for a moment, his smile seeming to grow. "Ah, Divatox. Beautiful, but petty. Anyway, how can you call yourself the Emperor, when every time you lose, you throw a temper tantrum that even a human toddler would call over the top?" He shook his head. "Dark Specter must be so ashamed to have one such as you in his midst."

Zedd cut him off before he could continue. "No one insults Lord Zedd and lives!" He held his staff towards Kronos, shooting out several bolts of lightning.

The bolts hit Kronos in the chest. He stood his ground, looking more bored than pained. He rolled his eyes and started making his way towards Zedd.

"You poor, naïve fool, have you forgotten? I am a god. I cannot be so easily destroyed." He grabbed Zedd's staff, ripped it from his grasp, and hit Zedd over the head with it, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Be thankful, 'Lord' Zedd, that I have not decided to end your pitiful little existence. Believe me, it would do the cosmos some good." He tossed Zedd's staff to the ground. "But then again, without you, the balance of light and darkness, the balance of good and evil – the balance that keep the Morphing Grid in check – would fluctuate."

Zedd picked himself up off the ground. He had no time to react as Kronos grabbed his face mask, his grip beginning to crush the metal visor around his eyes.

"You forget your place in the cosmos," Kronos hissed. "Do not make me destroy you. I do not want the balance to flux." He felt a sharp pain in his chest; upon looking down, he saw a sword sticking out of his body. "Goldar. How good of you to join us." He tossed Zedd back. "Your loyalty to your 'Emperor' is admirable, but you should know that you have made a very grave mistake." He slammed his elbow into Goldar's face, making him release his grip on the sword.

With Goldar out of the way, Kronos pulled the sword out of his body. His wounds closed up instantly. He turned to Goldar, who was charging at him again.

Kronos shook his head. "Goldar, you poor, simple fool." He pointed the tip of his staff towards Goldar. Goldar couldn't stop in time; he ran right into the blade, impaling himself. Goldar gritted his teeth in pain, hissed and snarled at Kronos. He coughed up green blood.

Kronos kicked Goldar back; he tumbled to the floor, lying helpless in a pool of blood.

"Now that he is out of the way…." He turned back to Zedd, who had his staff ready.

"I told you, nobody insults me and lives to do it again!" Kronos grabbed his staff before he could shoot his lightning. "What?!"

"Fool. Did you think I would let you do the same thing twice?" He slammed his forehead against Zedd's forcing Zedd to stumble back. A swift kick from Kronos sent Zedd flying, slamming him against the wall. "I offer you my aid in solving your issue with the Power Rangers, and this is how you repay me?"

"I never asked for your help," Zedd growled as he picked himself up off the floor.

"No, but you accepted my proposition. That is the same as asking for my aid. But now, my time here is done. I have solved your problem. You are down to just one little Power Ranger to deal with, and I'm sure that even you can destroy one little boy. So, I shall take my leave, and return to my cosmic observatory. And I pray for your sake, Zedd, that we never meet again." He vanished in a pillar of light.

Zedd gripped his staff, his anger slowly subsiding. He made his way over to his throne, taking a glance at Goldar as he went. The armored simian lay on the floor, his face contorted in pain as he continued to bleed out.

Zedd motioned to two Putty Patrollers. "Take him to the healing chamber." He heard them carry Goldar off as he made his way to his throne. He sat down, resting his staff on his lap, and leaned his head back.

 _He left me one Power Ranger to deal with. One is still too many. I'll have to figure out some way to destroy him. Soon._


	14. The Burden of Leadership

THE BURDEN OF LEADERSHIP

IT WAS PRETTY CLEAR THAT JASON DIDN'T WANT TO TALK TO ANYONE. HE SAT in the corner, alone, his knees hugged to his chest. His eyes were red and bloodshot – he'd spent the last hour sobbing in the corner. Twilight supposed that she couldn't blame him. After all, he was the leader of the Power Rangers – that meant that it was his job to keep his friends safe, to guide them and make sure that nothing bad happened to them.

It was the same with Twilight. Even before her coronation, she was considered the leader of her little band of friends – with Magic being the most elusive and powerful of the Elements of Harmony, it only made sense for Twilight to take that role. She never flaunted it, she never used that position to get what she wanted; she never wanted the position to begin with. She would have gladly allowed Rainbow Dash or Applejack to take command when they went into any dangerous situation – Nightmare Moon; the dragon that was spreading smoke over Equestria; Discord; the Changelings; King Sombra; Tirek; she was surprised at how Fluttershy somewhat took control of the situation with Starlight Glimmer, though it took some encouragement from everypony else.

But looking at Jason now, at the human whom she was told was strong and kind, watching him sulk in the corner, reveling in the loss of his friends, she felt her heart sink. She felt so sorry for him. There had to be something she could do.

If only she knew what. She could talk to him, could tell him that his friends wouldn't want him to be sorry for himself, but she wasn't sure if he would listen. She could tell him that he had to keep fighting for his friends, but would he? Would he take anything she said to heart?

There was only one way to find out.

She trotted over to him. He barely seemed to notice.

"Jason? Jason, are you okay?"

"You should know the answer to that question, Twilight," he said with a hushed voice. "I'm not okay. I feel like I let my friends down."

She put a hoof on his leg. "You didn't let your friends down. You did your best to keep them safe. I don't know how long you've been the leader of the Power Rangers, but you've done a really good job keeping them safe up until this point. You shouldn't beat yourself up for what happened back there."

"I can't help it. I'm the leader. I should have done something. But I didn't. I saved my own skin; I didn't think about everyone else." He turned to Twilight. "Do you have any idea the kind of pressure that someone in a leadership position deals with on an almost hourly basis, Twilight?"

"Yes, I do. Don't forget, I'm a princess. I'm royalty. I know exactly what it's like to be in a role of leadership, a role where everypony is looking up to you, looking to you for guidance. Even before my coronation, I was the one taking charge of the Elements of Harmony. I was the one who was issuing the commands, giving the orders, assigning everyone certain tasks. I know exactly what you mean. I feel the pressure on my shoulders every day." Jason turned away. Twilight used her magic to make him face her again. "Don't make the mistake of thinking that you're the only one who's lost something here, Jason. Discord is literally powerless, and both he and I are trapped in your world. We can get back to Equestria once my magic has been replenished – though I don't know how long that will take; last time it took nearly two days – but that won't solve Discord's problem, or bring your friends back." She nuzzled up against him; Jason put his arm around her, gently stroking her magenta mane. "I know exactly how you feel, Jason."

"Yuck," Discord gagged. "Getting all sappy on us." He leaned against Alpha. "Can you believe them?" Alpha brushed him away. "What? Was it something I said? Was it my breath? Do I need a mint?"

"Discord, Twilight and Jason have just been through a seriously traumatic event," Zordon told him. "They are two beings separated by dimensional barriers, yet they have more in common than they think. Including the fact that their friends are lost in Equestria, and even I can't say if we will ever get them back."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. But do they have to be so sappy about it?"

"I don't know why you're so cheery," Alpha said as he worked the control consoles. "Didn't you lose all your powers?"

"I'll get them back. Eventually. Maybe. I think."

###########################

They'd taken the last few minutes to catch their breath and try to figure out just what had happened. After they'd been blown back across the rift, it had suddenly closed. They could just barely make out Jason lunging for them, but it was too late – the rift had closed completely.

They were stuck in Equestria, with no way to get back to Angel Grove.

But that wasn't their main focus right now. They were more worried about Princess Celestia, who was off by herself. She'd folded her wings against her body and lowered her head in shame and sadness; one of her front hooves was scraping the ground.

How could she have been so foolish? How had she allowed Equestria to cross paths with all of these other worlds over the last eighteen months and not expect any repercussions from it? She knew of the laws of the multiverse – Starswirl the Bearded taught them to her and Luna just after he made them the Princesses of the Sun and the Moon. She should have known that ever since Cloud and his friends came to Equestria that they would have to suffer the consequences, even if it wasn't entirely their fault.

But why rope Angel Grove into this? They had nothing to do with what had happened before. The Power Rangers and the world they defended weren't at fault. Why had Kronos decided to punish them as well? It made no sense to her.

The more she thought about it, the more depressed she became. Her star pupil – the Princess of Friendship – and Discord were trapped in Angel Grove, and five of the six Power Rangers were trapped here in Equestria, with no way of getting home. Sure, Twilight could travel between the two worlds, but that wouldn't solve everything, and even then, traveling between worlds just once would deplete her magic reserves.

She'd been so foolish to not try to discuss things with Kronos beforehoof. If she had, they may have avoided this whole mess; her world wouldn't have been threatened with destruction, her subjects wouldn't be tending their wounds – some of which appeared to be quite serious; fortunately, it seemed like nopony had broken anything, except for their pride – and the Power Rangers would be safe at home, combatting their own villains. But no, she had to let things go, she had to put off discussing the issue with Kronos until it was too late. Luna had warned her about this, using the analogy of a cockatrice – she'd said that if Celestia put it off for too long, then she'd have more trouble to deal with; just as if she hadn't destroyed the cockatrice that had been hunting her, it would have frozen her in stone ten times over. And now, her subjects had nearly had their lives taken from them, Canterlot had been damaged – again – and her subjects' allies were in a world they knew virtually nothing about, a world in which they did not belong.

"It's all my fault," she whispered.

"Did you say something, Princess?" Applejack asked.

"I was foolish enough to let things slide until it was too late," Celestia mumbled. "I saw the signs, but I did nothing about it. I knew of Kronos's laws, but I never took any action when our world began receiving visitors from other worlds. And now look at what has happened."

"What happened wasn't your fault, Your Majesty," Kimberly said softly. "You're not the one to blame. Kronos is."

"Equestria is my responsibility. And for the second time, I've failed to do anything to protect it, until it was too late. I didn't do anything until after the Decepticons attacked, and I didn't do anything now. I've been letting things go, hoping that it wouldn't come to this."

"Wait, hold on, so you're saying that you knew that something like this would happen?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I knew it was a possibility, but I never knew it would actually happen. At least, not now."

"That doesn't make you a bad princess, Princess," Rarity said. "You're one of the rulers of all of Equestria. You've got so many things to worry about. It's understandable that you wouldn't focus on something like this."

Kimberly patted Celestia on the side. "Please, Princess, don't beat yourself up about it."

"Kim's right," Zack added. "It could have happened to anybody. What we need to focus on now is finding a way to get back." He stretched and yawned. "But first, maybe we should get some rest. The way we are now, we won't be able to do anything."

"Zack's got a good point," Tommy agreed. He turned to Celestia. "Don't worry, Princess. We'll figure something out. Besides, I'm sure that Jason's working hard trying to come up with a solution to this problem."

##############################

He'd been sitting in the corner for nearly an hour. Twilight had tried to talk to him again, but he just pushed her away. It broke her heart to see him like this. It was like he was carrying this burden all by himself; he felt the weight of the situation on his shoulders, and there was no way that Twilight could comfort him.

It didn't seem like anypony could. So she figured it was better if she left him alone.

Discord was sitting atop one of the pylons on either side of Zordon's tube – despite having his powers taken away, he could still fly thanks to his wings. He had his arms crossed, and he was tapping his eagle talons impatiently against his other arm.

"Okay." He leaped down off the pylon and made his way over to Jason. "Look here, kid. I think it's time you stopped putting on this whole 'Feel Sorry For Me' thing. It's getting old." Jason just turned away. "All right, Red." He grabbed the collar of Jason's shirt and lifted him off the floor.

"Discord!" Twilight screamed. "What are you doing!"

Discord wasn't listening. "Look here, bub. Sitting on your butt feeling sorry for yourself won't get anything done. You want to bring your friends back to this world? Then you'd better damn well do something about it. You can't do that by feeling sorry for yourself."

"And just what the hell do you want me to do about it?" Jason demanded. "I can't do ANYTHING about it! I can't open rifts between worlds! I can't travel through time! I can't manipulate reality itself! I'm only human! There is simply nothing that I can do right now, so get your god damn hands off of me!" He slapped Discord's hand away, dropping to the floor. "The only one here who could feasibly do anything about this is Zordon, and he already said that even this is beyond him. He's not a god."

"Then how about you talk to the god?" Discord suggested. "Give Kronos a ring."

"Yeah, you think that he'd listen? He'd just as soon destroy me as listen to anything I have to say." He turned and walked away. He stopped; took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap like that. It's just….Well, I think you know."

Twilight walked over to Jason and gently put a hoof on his arm. "You can't beat yourself up for what happened. That's not going to help anyone, and it's just going to make you feel even worse than you already do. I've seen folks hold onto their guilt for so long that it drove them to madness. I'm sure your friends wouldn't want to see that happen to you. I know I don't."

Jason leaned against one of the control consoles. He crossed his arms and lowered his head. "I just don't know what to do. I can't think."

"You're tired," Twilight said. "We all are. In the last twenty-four hours, we've had barely three hours of sleep, and then there was our battle with Kronos." She rubbed her sides with her wings. "My ribs are still stinging from that hit. Maybe….Maybe if we get some rest, we can figure things out from there."

"I don't need it," Jason said defiantly. "I just need to get my thoughts together."

"You can't fool me, Jason," Twilight said. "I don't even have to look at you to know that you're wiped out. I can hear it in your voice." She looked over to the viewing globe, saw her reflection in the glass. "Oh, wow. You're not the only one who's frazzled. If Rarity were here, she'd be flipping her lid right about now." She looked back at Jason. "You want to see what you really look like right now? Come take a look. The viewing globe makes a great mirror."

"I'm not looking at myself," Jason scoffed. "I don't need to. I'm fine."

Twilight glared at him. "I thought you'd say something like that." She used her magic to pull him over.

"Hey, what are you doing? Let me go."

"Take a good, long look at yourself, Jason," Twilight said.

Jason looked at his reflection in the viewing globe, and for the first time, saw himself. He was covered in dirt and gunge from dried sweat; he had dried blood from several cuts and bruises all over his face and arms; dark circles were under his eyes, a sign of little sleep; his short, black hair was a mess, matted in some places and sticking up in others, with bits of dirt and gravel stuck in it. His clothes were dirty and ripped. His eyes were bloodshot. His left arm was twitching due to a muscle spasm. Actually, now that he looked at eyes, he wasn't sure if the dark circles were because of exhaustion, or if at least one of them was because of a black eye. Either one was certainly possible.

"Wow. You're right. We look like we've gone through a war."

"Jason, I would suggest going home and getting some rest," Zordon said.

"More than three hours this time," Alpha added.

Jason nodded his head in reply. "But what about Twilight and Discord? I don't think they want to sleep on a hard floor."

Discord put his arm around Jason's shoulders. "Looks like we're bunking with you, buddy!"

"Well….Okay, but I'd suggest staying out of sight. If my mom sees you two, she'll flip. It's bad enough she doesn't know I'm a Power Ranger and thinks I'm picking fights just for kicks; I don't even know what she'd think of a purple pony and a, a…a whatever."

Discord rolled his eyes. He was about to say something when Jason pressed the button on his wrist communicator, teleporting them to his backyard.

Jason pulled away from Discord and Twilight. "You two hide in the bushes. I'll let you know when it's safe to come out." He waited until they had done as he'd said, hiding themselves between the large bushes that separated his house from the neighbors', before heading to the front door.

His mother was already waiting for him.

"Jason, where have you – oh my god, what happened to you?"

"Nothing major, Mom. I'm okay, really."

"Jason, have you been getting into fights? What's gotten into you?"

"Just so you know, Mom, he made the first move. I was merely defending myself."

"You look like you've gone through a war zone."

"Felt like it." He started making his way to the stairs. "God, I need a shower."

His mother stopped him, throwing her arms around him. He winced at the pain in his shoulders and his chest, gritted his teeth, tried to keep his balance before he fell. He could hear his mother silently crying as she held him. Somehow, he found it hard to blame her. She had no idea about his double life as a high school student and as a Power Ranger; she had no idea how close he had come to actually dying today. There was no way she could know, unless she found out for herself.

"Mom, it's okay. Really."

"I'm sorry. I've been putting a lot of pressure on you. Ever since your father left –"

"Mom, that's got nothing to do with it, really. I – I wish I could tell you, I really do, but even I don't know where to begin. Look, it's not your fault."

"But – but I've been ignoring you. Ignoring your grief, your pain. All because I didn't want to believe that you were actually hurting."

He gently pushed his mother away from him. "Mom, I get it. Believe me, I do. I kind of know what you mean. But listen to me, I never blamed you for Dad leaving. I never blamed you for anything. We've got different ways of dealing with the pain. You've been trying to ignore it, and I've been trying to keep it bottled up. I know that sooner or later it's going to catch up to us, but when that happens, we can't let it keep us down. I know, I know, you'd tell me that my father still loves me, and maybe that's true, but right now, he's out of the picture. It's just you and me. So, Mom, if you don't mind, I'd like to get a shower, and then….And then, I need some sleep."

His mother lightly hugged him again. "Okay, sweetie. You know I love you, right?"

"I love you too, Mom," Jason said as he made his way to the stairs.

It took him twice as long as it usually did for him to get to his room – besides the fact that he was incredibly tired, he was also limping; he hadn't even noticed that his ankle had gone sore. Still, he managed to make it to his room and opened the window, looking down on the bushes.

"Twilight, Discord!" he called in a hushed whisper. "The coast is clear. Come on up."

Twilight and Discord slowly emerged from the bushes and flapped their way up to his window. They squeezed through. As soon as Discord had pulled his tail in, Jason closed the window and locked it. He sat down on his bed.

"Okay, from now on we need to be quiet. I don't want my mom to find you guys if we can avoid it." He reached into his dresser and took out a new set of clothes. "I'm going to get a shower, so please, try not to make so much noise. Actually – hey, Twilight, do you know any invisibility spells?"

"The only one I know lasts for maybe ten minutes," Twilight replied.

"Well, that sucks. Okay, if you hear someone coming, hide somewhere. The closet, under the bed, just as long as it's out of sight. I'll be done in the shower soon." He left the room and headed down the hall.

################################

Leann Scott sat at the kitchen table, holding her head in her hands. She felt so bad for her son. He had been going through so much since his father filed for divorce. That was nearly six years ago. She couldn't imagine the pain he'd kept bottled up inside, and lately, he'd been coming home with bruises that he couldn't explain and he'd been exhausted beyond belief.

She'd also noticed that his grades and attendance at school had been dropping, yet he was still able to lead his karate classes at the youth center.

Was it something she'd done? Was she to blame? She had no idea. Part of her wanted to pin the blame on herself – after all, she'd been granted full custody of Jason until his eighteenth birthday – which was nearly a year or so away – and she'd had to take an extra shift at the hospital just to make ends meet. Jason had been trying to help out when he could, but she didn't want him to. This wasn't his responsibility, even though he always tried to tell her that it was.

But that was just like Jason. He was always taking on some sort of responsibility that he didn't need to. He was always trying to do so much for someone so young. She wished that he wouldn't – he had to worry about his school, his karate class, spending time with his friends. It was bad enough he and his friends were part of so many charity events on top of their daily lives after school.

She rubbed her eyes with her hands. Maybe she was putting too much strain on herself; stressing herself out too much. After all, it wasn't her idea to break up the family. But then again, blaming Jonathan for what happened back then wouldn't help anything either. Though this wasn't exactly something that she could just let go.

 _I've got to get ready for work_ , she thought. She was working the morning shift today, and then she'd have to go back in later on for the night shift. That left no time to spend with her son. She'd spend the entire day sleeping, and by the time she'd wake up, Jason would probably be in bed again.

She stood up from the table and made her way upstairs. The door to Jason's room was shut – odd; he usually left it open – as was the bathroom door. She could hear the shower running.

"Jason, I'm going to work now."

"Okay, Mom. Have a good night."

"You too, honey. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom."

She turned to leave, but stopped. She was curious; why was his bedroom door shut? She trusted him enough to not go snooping without his permission, but her curiosity was winning her over. Slowly, she made her way over to the door and opened it a little bit.

Everything was just as it was before – the bed was neatly made, save for the crease where he had probably sat down for a minute; his punching bag was hanging from the ceiling; in the darkness, she could still make out his Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan posters.

Everything was as it should have been. She closed the door and headed back downstairs.

##################################

Jason finished drying himself off and getting dressed in a fresh set of clothes. It felt so good to be cleaned. He felt a little refreshed, less sore, and besides, he hated being dirty like that.

As he left the bathroom, he was worried that his mother had somehow discovered Twilight and Discord. He knew she probably hadn't – she didn't say anything about it – but the possibility was still there.

"Twilight? Discord?" he silently called. "Everything okay?"

"We're fine," Discord said. "Your mom didn't see us, if that's what you were going to ask next."

"Okay, good," Jason sighed. He shut the door behind him and made his way over to his bed.

"We heard your mother talking to you while you were cleaning up," Twilight said. "She seems like a very sweet lady."

"She is. But she has no idea about….Well, I think you know." He yawned and stretched. "Sorry, you guys. But I've got to get some sleep."

"Same here," Twilight said with a nod. "We can figure out how to help our friends later on."

Jason lay himself down on his bed and drifted off to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

#################################

Leann had to go to work soon, but she wanted to check up on Jason one last time. There was just something about the way he looked and the way he was talking earlier that was bothering her. It was like he was deliberately trying to avoid answering her questions, and the way he talked about how he got his wounds….Could it have been possible that he was lying?

Chances were that Jason had probably gone to sleep by now, but she still had to check. Slowly, she opened the door to his room.

He was lying on his bed, passed out, fast asleep. She saw his chest steadily rise and fall as he breathed. A smile spread across her face as she walked over to his bed; knelt down next to him; placed a hand on his chest.

"I can't begin to imagine what you're going through," she whispered. "I just want you to know that I'm here for you."

She wasn't sure what compelled her to start silently singing – maybe it was because she was thinking about the way she would sing to him when he was much younger – but a quiet melody began to escape from her mouth.

 _I see you lying here_

 _But you're so far away_

 _Crying out for help_

 _You know that I know your pain_

 _You're going through so much_

 _But I know that I could be the one to hold you_

 _Every single day_

 _I find it hard to say_

 _I could be yours alone_

 _You will see someday_

 _That all along the way_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I see you walking by_

 _Your hair always hiding your face_

 _I know why you've been hurting_

 _I wish I had some way to say_

 _You're going through so much_

 _Don't you know that I could be the one to hold you_

 _Every single day_

 _I find it hard to say_

 _I could be yours alone_

 _You will see someday_

 _That all along the way_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I'm stretching but you're just out of reach_

 _You should know_

 _I'm ready when you're ready for me_

 _And I'm waiting for the right time_

 _For the day I catch your eye_

 _To let you know_

 _That I'm yours to hold_

 _Every single day_

 _I find it hard to say_

 _I could be yours alone_

 _You will see someday_

 _That all along the way_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I was yours to hold_

 _I'm stretching but you're just out of reach_

 _I'm ready when you're ready for me_

She gently kissed his forehead. "I've got to go, Jason. I'll see you when I get home. I love you." With that, she left.

#################################

Twilight let out the breath she'd been holding. When she and Discord heard someone coming up the stairs, they quickly hid where they could – Discord in the closet and Twilight under the bed. Jason' mother hadn't spotted either of them, thank Celestia. And then there was that song, that sweet tune that almost sounded like a lullaby. It reminded Twilight of when Celestia would sing to her when she was just a filly, starting her studies under the princess.

Slowly, she came out from under the bed, just as Discord opened up the closet door. "She gone?" he asked.

"Yeah, she's gone," Twilight said. "I really wish Jason would let us meet her. She seems so nice."

"Yeah, well, how do you think the lady'd react to a purple pony princess and a draconequus? Can you say panic?"

Twilight just glared at Discord, before turning away and yawning. "I'll see you when I wake up."

Though she wondered if she even could get any sleep. There was so much on her mind; she knew that Jason had so much on his mind too. It was amazing that he could sleep like that, despite being incredibly exhausted from the battle with Kronos, coupled with being awake for more than twenty-four hours with just a three hour nap in between. She knew he was worried about his friends. She knew he was worried about his mother. She knew he was worried about how to get Discord's powers back; how to fix everything that Kronos had done.

But that could wait. For now, Twilight lay on the floor, curling up and resting her head on her front hooves as she drifted off to sleep.


	15. Princess of the Night, Guardian of Dream

PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT, GUARDIAN OF DREAMS

APPLE BLOOM HAD BEEN SURPRISED WHEN SHE SAW FIVE OF THE POWER Rangers coming to the barn. But they looked like they'd been through a rough time. And they looked like they needed a nap. Which would probably explain why they didn't come out of the barn after Applejack led them in there.

She met her big sister at the door.

"Are they okay?" she asked. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, li'l sis," Applejack replied. "Them Power Rangers, though, they needed the rest. Come on." She led her little sister back to the house. "We probably shouldn't disturb them for a while. 'sides, they ain't exactly in a good mood."

"Why? What happened? You beat up the bad guy, didn't you?"

Applejack sat on the couch. Apple Bloom joined her. Applejack pulled her sister in close.

"Not quite, Bloom. We gave him a good lickin', no doubt 'bout that, but in the end, he whupped us. Left Discord with no powers, and left Twi and Discord stuck in the Power Rangers' world. He also left a good chunk of the Ranger team here in Equstria. We'll try an figure out some way for them to get home later, but right now, I think it's best if we let'em get a little bit of sleep. They're plum tuckered out. And honestly, so am I." She stretched and yawned. "I'm gonna go catch about forty winks. See ya later." She started going upstairs.

"Applejack?" Apple Bloom called after her.

"Yeah? What's up, sugar cube?"

"I'm glad you're okay," Apple Bloom said. "I don't know what we'd do without you."

Applejack smiled. "Oh, Apple Bloom." She trotted over to the little filly and pulled her in for a tight hug. "I want you to promise me that you'll be strong. Okay? For Granny Smith and Big Macintosh. I need you all to be strong, just in case something bad happens to me. Okay?"

Apple Bloom was speechless. How was she supposed to respond to something like that? Her sister had just told her that she was going to die someday – without actually saying it – and didn't want Apple Bloom to be upset? That was what she was getting out of it, anyway.

No, that couldn't have been what Applejack was trying to say. Maybe….Maybe this is what Granny Smith had said to Applejack and Big Macintosh after their parents died in that barn accident. Apple Bloom was too young to really remember anything outside of what she had been told, but it tore her up inside that she would never know who her mother and father were. Could that be why Applejack was saying this? Did she want Apple Bloom to remember her if – when – she died?

Of course Apple Bloom would remember her big sister. She would remember all the fun times they had, all the arguments they got into, all the lessons Applejack had taught her, how Applejack had helped the Cutie Mark Crusaders when Babs Seed had gone bad….Why would Applejack think Apple Bloom wouldn't remember?

"I promise," Apple Bloom said quietly.

"That's good." She took her hat off of her head and placed on Apple Bloom's head. It was still a little too big for the little filly; it slid down over top of her eyes. Applejack chuckled as Apple Bloom struggled to see past the brim. "I'm gonna go catch some shut eye. I'll see ya when I wake up." She winked at Apple Bloom before heading upstairs to her room.

########################

Fluttershy winced as Hairy the Bear tightened the bandage around her torso. She could still feel the stinging pain of when Kronos hit her, nearly shattering her ribs. Her muzzle was still sore, and when she walked, she limped; she'd twisted at least one of her hooves during the fight, and it really hurt.

Hairy let out a tiny growl. Fluttershy smiled at him; for such a burly bear, he was so sweet. It was nice of him to offer to help bandage her up when she got home.

"It's not your fault I'm hurting, Hairy," she said. "You don't have to apologize." She winced as Angel Bunny put a pack of ice on her sore hoof. "Ouch. No, Angel, it's okay. It's the good kind of pain. You know, like when I pull a thorn out of your little paws." She looked up at Hummingway. The green hummingbird let out a tiny squeak. "I think I'll be okay after I get some rest and don't rip off my bandages, Hummingway."

Fluttershy had come straight home after they departed; the Power Rangers had taken Applejack up on her offer to sleep in her barn until their strength had recovered. It wasn't an easy trek – traveling across Ponyville with bruised, possibly broken, ribs and a sore hoof made the trip incredibly difficult, and even when she was flying, she could still feel the pain in her sides and on her muzzle. She was surprised that nothing was broken; at least, nothing felt broken. What would a broken rib or a broken muzzle feel like, anyway? Fluttershy had been injured before, but had never broken any bones in her body. Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, had broken her wings numerous times, and the most she said was that it just stung.

Mr. Beaverton Beaverteeth chattered at her. "I don't know if Discord's okay or not," she replied – she was the only pony in Ponyville who could understand what the non-verbal animals were saying; it was her special gift, after all. "But I hope he and Twilight are doing okay in the other world. I hope they find a way home soon. And I hope we help the other Power Rangers find a way home soon." She looked over at the futon where Discord usually slept when he visited her. It still had the long, serpentine indent of his body in the cushions.

But now that futon was empty, and Fluttershy had no idea if it would ever be filled again.

###############################

Rarity and Sweetie Belle held each other close. After the adrenaline had worn off, Rarity had been reduced to a sobbing wreck. She was amazed she and her friends had survived that battle with only a few scrapes – she had a twisted hoof and a sore hind leg, her ribs were aching, one of her eyes had nearly been swollen shut, and her nose was bleeding – and the fact that they had come so close to being killed finally caught up to her. It reminded Sweetie Belle of when Rarity was suffering nightmares after her encounter with the Decepticons – and encounter that nearly robbed her of her life. She'd been reduced to a crying wreck, a recluse, barely having any interactions with anypony. But now, at least Sweetie Belle knew that Rarity wouldn't shut herself away again.

But seeing her big sister break down like this broke Sweetie Belle's heart. Rarity was one of the strongest, bravest ponies she knew, and to see her crying like this – either her spirit had been totally shattered or she had just barely survived a dangerous situation.

It had to be the latter, given Rarity's wounds.

So here they were, in Rarity's room above the boutique, Sweetie Belle holding her big sister once again, once again trying to comfort her.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie Belle," Rarity said. "I told you that I would always be strong for you, and here I am bawling like a newborn foal."

"It's okay, Rarity," Sweetie Belle said gently. "You look like you're hurting. I mean, you look like someone really beat you up."

Rarity simply nodded. "We all took a beating." She wiped her eyes; her mascara was running thanks to her tears. "That Kronos….He's stronger than we thought. We put up a good fight, though."

"What about everypony else?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Twilight? Rainbow Dash? Fluttershy? Pinkie Pie? Applejack? Those humans? Discord?"

Rarity wasn't sure if she should tell Sweetie Belle about Twilight and Discord being trapped in the other world; wasn't sure if she should tell her about the Power Rangers being trapped in this world. Then again, Sweetie Belle would find out sooner or later, so why put off the inevitable?

She was about to reply when there was a knock at the front door. "Who could that be?" She gently pushed Sweetie Belle away and headed downstairs. "Can't be a customer. They would have just walked right in." She opened the door. "Oh, Spike."

"Hi Rarity," Spike said, but not in the usual tone he had when speaking to her. Normally, when talking to Rarity, he had this sort of whimsical tone to his voice. His words would sometimes slur, or he would go periods without saying anything at all and just stare at her with hearts in his eyes – it was no secret that the little dragon had a crush on Rarity, and though she didn't exactly reciprocate his feelings, she loved him just as a good friend. But now, he sounded different. Worried. Almost scared. "Have you seen Twilight anywhere? I thought she'd be with you guys."

"No, not since the rift was closed," Rarity replied.

"Oh, it's closed? Well, that's a good thing, right?"

Rarity stepped aside, letting Spike into the boutique. She closed the door. "Spike, I'm sorry to say that Twilight Sparkle and Discord are trapped in the other world."

"What?!" Spike yelled. "How, what, how – how did that happen?"

"It was Kronos," Rarity replied. "He knocked us, and some of the Power Rangers, across the rift before closing it."

"Why doesn't Discord just bring them back?"

"He doesn't have his powers anymore – Kronos stole them."

"Oh."

Sweetie Belle came trotting down the stairs. "Did I hear you say something about Discord and Twilight being stuck in that other world?"

"Yes you did, Sweetie Belle," Rarity said. "And most of the Power Rangers are stuck here. They're over at Applejack's place getting some rest. Celestia knows they need it."

"You look like you do too, Rarity," Spike pointed out. "Maybe you should take a nap. Then we can meet up with everyone else and try to figure something out?"

"Maybe," Rarity said. She turned to Sweetie Belle. "Why don't you go play with your friends for a while. I'm going to get some rest."

"Okay," Sweetie Belle said, though not very enthusiastically.

"Looks like it's back to mopping the palace floor for the fifth time today," Spike mumbled.

Rarity made her way back upstairs, back into her room, and crawled into bed, ignoring the pain in her sides and her back as she lay down.

##################################

"What was it like? Was he tough? How hard did you smack him? Did you get him with a Sonic Rainboom? The Buccaneer Blaze? Filly Flash? Come on, Rainbow Dash, I need details!"

Scootaloo had been constantly asking Rainbow Dash about what happened on the other side of the rift since she got home. They'd decided that it would be best if they split up, got a little bit of rest and recovery time in before they started thinking about their next move. The only problem was, Rainbow Dash couldn't, not with Scootaloo asking question after question, hardly leaving Rainbow Dash any time to answer. She loved the little filly like she were her own little sister, but even she would admit that there were times where Scootaloo could annoy her, even if the little orange Pegasus didn't mean to.

And this was one of those times.

"You look like you got beat up pretty good. Did you beat him up too?"

"Scootaloo, enough!" Rainbow Dash snapped. "No more questions! I don't feel like talking about it!" Scootaloo shrunk back. Rainbow Dash's ears lowered in sadness and shame; she immediately regretted what she'd just said. "I'm sorry, Scootaloo. I didn't mean to snap at you like that."

"No, it's okay," Scootaloo said quietly. "I guess I was nagging a bit. I didn't mean to. Sorry."

Rainbow Dash sighed. She ruffled Scootaloo's purple mane with her hoof. "Nah, you don't have anything to apologize about, kid. I get you're excited to hear about what happened over there. I don't blame you. But let me say right now that – OW!" She winced as a new surge of pain ran through her body. "Let me say right now that that guy hurts. A lot! My back right leg is hurting again, and that leg hasn't really hurt since I got that piece of Starscream's missile stuck in it." She looked at her right hind leg; she could still see the scar from when Nurse Darby patched her up. Her skin grew back over the stitches, but there were times where she could still feel the metal string. "Yeah, not cool."

"Those Power Rangers are pretty cool though."

"Yeah, but right now, they're not in a good mood. I guess being stuck somewhere you're not supposed to be will do that."

"What do you mean?"

"Some of them are stuck here in Ponyville thanks to that creep Kronos. And Twilight and Discord are stuck in the other world. That bites, you know?"

"Can't Discord –"

"No more powers."

"Bummer."

"Yeah." She lay down on the futon in her bedroom. "I could use a mug of hot cider, a few chapters of Daring Do, and about ten days of sleep. I'm beat, I'm beat up, and I feel like the dirt between Tank's toes."

"But Tank doesn't have toes."

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but smile at the little Pegasus filly. "Why don't you go practice some new tricks on your scooter. I'm gonna catch some Z's." She closed her eyes before waiting for Scootaloo to respond.

"Okay, well, I guess I'll see you later," Scootaloo said as she headed out the door.

#############################

For once, Pinkie Pie wasn't in the mood to have any kind of fun. She'd had a party planned today – a birthday party for sweet, cute little Pip, the immigrant colt from Trottingham. Unfortunately, she'd had to cancel and let somepony else handle the festivities. She had her wounds to tend to, as well as some tiredness to try to get rid of.

So here she was, in her room above Sugar Cube Corner – ever since moving to Ponyville from the rock farm, she'd been a live-in apprentice for Mr. and Mrs. Cake – slowly sipping on some chocolate milk, taking small bites out of a Boston cream doughnut, and watching her pet alligator Gummy – so called because he'd had his teeth pulled after he hatched, and his teeth were pulled every so often to ensure he never attacked Pinkie Pie or the Cakes – roll around his favorite ball of yarn.

Pinkie's forehead was numb thanks to the bag of ice she'd strapped to her head – she'd taken a pretty nasty blow during the fight. Billy gave her a quick once-over, concluding that she may have gotten a mild concussion, but it wouldn't be anything to worry about.

Still, it really, really hurt.

"I feel so woozy-floozy, Gummy," she said. "You ever take a foot to the face? It hurts." Gummy just stared at her blankly. He crawled up onto the bed with her and gently nibbled on her mane. "Aw, thanks Gummy. You don't know how much that means to me." She took another drink of her chocolate milk.

She looked out her window, in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. She knew that the Power Rangers were over there – Applejack had offered them the barn to sleep in until they'd regained their strength – and once they were fully recovered, they would begin trying to figure out a way to get back to their world. Pinkie Pie would have suggested that machine that was still in the humans' compound in the Everfree Forest, before remembering that it went to a completely different world, and she wasn't sure if the Power Rangers would accept help from a magical wish granting dragon, assuming Isaac and Doris had found the Dragon Balls again.

She lay down on the bed, her head flopping down on the pillow. "I need a nap." She quickly closed her eyes and started snoring.

######################################

The only sound coming from the five of them was the silent sound of steady breathing. They were exhausted, both physically and mentally, and their bodies as well as their pride had been damaged. With the rift closed, there was no way for them to get home. There was no way for Jason to know if they were still safe. Twilight and Discord had also been separated from their friends, and they too were now lost in a world that they knew virtually nothing about, never mind the fact that Discord had had his powers taken from him.

If the rift hadn't been closed, they'd have gone right back and gotten back into the fight. But as it was, there was no way for them to get back. At least, none that they knew. Until they figured out a way to get home, the only thing they could do was recuperate and recover their strength.

Which is how they had come to sleep on bales of hay spread out like makeshift beds. They weren't very comfortable, the hay dug into their skin, it itched, but they were sleeping so soundly that they didn't even notice. They just lay there, curled up on their makeshift beds.

The next thing they knew, they were awake, but not in the barn. It was like they were now at some sort of citadel, the courtyard of a temple, surrounded by darkness.

"What's going on?" Kimberly asked, her voice high in shock. "Where are we? How'd we get here?"

"That's a good question," Tommy replied. He turned to everyone else, who all looked just as shocked as he and Kimberly did. "Are we dreaming?"

"How can we be having the same dream?" Zack asked.

"It's possible, but rare," Billy said.

"Okay, this is too weird," Trini said. "How can we all be having the same dream?"

"I can't explain it," Tommy answered, "but it felt like someone was calling out to me. I heard someone calling my name, and the next thing I knew, I was here."

"That's what happened with me!" Zack cried. "What is going on?"

"That would be my doing."

It was a female voice, but not one they recognized. There was a sort of regality to it, with a bit of guilt mixed in with it. It seemed like the voice had come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.

But then, a being appeared out of the darkness. An equine figure, similar in size to Princess Celestia. A female alicorn, from what the Rangers could tell. Her coat was so dark that she blended in with the surrounding area.

Until she lit up her horn, casting a bright light all around. They were blinded for a moment, their eyes adjusting to the change in the lighting, and when they could, they took a look at the pony who had spoken.

Her fur was dark navy blue. Her mane and tail, like Princess Celestia, flowed as though they were in a river, and they looked like they were made up of the night sky – bright star-like dots on a dark background. A blue crown was atop her head, just behind her horn. Her wings were spread out in a regal manner. There was a marking of a moon on her flank, surrounded by a blotch of dark fur. A blue collar, engraved with a light blue sapphire stone, was around her neck. Like Celestia, there was something rather calming about this admittedly beautiful alicorn.

Still, they weren't going to take any chances. They raised their fists and bent their knees, ready to fight.

"Calm yourselves, children," the alicorn said. She raised a hoof. "I mean you no harm."

"Who are you?" Tommy demanded.

"My name is Luna. I am the Princess of the Night and the Guardian of Dreams."

"A princess?" Kimberly repeated. "Like Celestia and Twilight?"

Luna smiled and nodded. "It was my sister Celestia who decided to crown Twilight Sparkle. But that is not the purpose of my visit."

"Wait, hold on a minute, let me ask you something," Zack said. "Did you bring us all here?"

"I did," Luna replied with a nod. "Even though the day is the time that I too get my rest, I still feel everyone's dreams. I can still guide folks through their sleep."

"That doesn't make any sense," Billy told her.

"I'm sorry that you think that," Luna said. "But I couldn't help but notice the five of you were particularly troubled. You must forgive me, I've only seen the dreams of humans once before. But I have seen what troubles you all so. You want to get back home to your friend, yes?"

"We do, Your Highness," Trini answered. "But, you see, we don't know how. And Twilight and Discord are stuck in our world, and Discord's had his powers taken away."

"I see." Luna walked over to the edge of the courtyard and stared out into the dark void. "Then it seems the only hope that anyone has rests with Twilight."

"She's a tough little pony, I'll give her that," Tommy said, "but eve she wouldn't last long against a god by herself."

"She did once," Luna said softly. "When I was still corrupted by the hatred and jealousy that transformed me into Nightmare Moon, that wicked mare of darkness."

"I don't get it," Kimberly said.

Luna sighed. "It was well before any of you were born. At least one thousand years ago. Because the ponies of Equestria frolicked and played during the day, the time when Celestia is in control, I began to feel jealous, as the ponies shunned and slept through the night. That jealousy eventually transformed me into a wicked mare of darkness known as Nightmare Moon. The battle that ensued was vicious, and I came dangerously close to killing Celestia."

"But you didn't, and that's the important thing," Trini assured her.

"There's more to it, my dear," Luna continued. "Celestia used the fabled Elements of Harmony to banish me to the moon, where I remained imprisoned for ten centuries, until the one thousandth Summer Sun Celebration, when I broke out. It was during that time that Celestia sent Twilight Sparkle, her prized pupil, to Ponyville to study the magic of friendship. If it were not for Twilight Sparkle and her friends, I would still be consumed by the jealousy I felt towards my sister. I would still be that horrible monster, who wanted to plunge the land into an eternal night. If not for Twilight Sparkle, I would not have been able to fight off the Tantabus – the physical representation of all the guilt I had been living with." She turned back to them. "You're right; Twilight Sparkle is a strong pony. But even she could only battle someone like Tirek to a standstill. She needs her friends. Her friends are her power, just as I'm sure your friends are your powers, yes?"

"You could say that, yeah," Tommy answered. "But, Princess, is that story the only reason you called us all here?"

"I've only delved into the dreams of humans once," Luna replied. "And even then, it was only one human. He had been going through some difficult times and was finding it hard to believe in himself. As for my tale, I know it may seem pointless to you, but you must realize that during my time as Nightmare Moon, I was powerless to stop myself. I know what it feels like to not be able to do anything to help someone you care about, or stop yourself from hurting them." She noticed four of the humans turn to Tommy, who just turned away, trying not to look at them. "And I see that at least one of you has gone through something similar. Don't worry; that's none of my business. But listen – if you truly wish to get back home, if you truly wish to help your friends, then the first thing you should do is start believing in yourselves."

"Are you saying that we don't already?" Kimberly asked. She crossed her arms.

"What I'm saying, Pink Ranger, is that you need to have faith. Believe that you will find a way home. It may not happen right away, but I'm sure that you can do it." She smiled and gave a slight nod of the head. "I'm going to send you all back now. Good luck."

############################

They all awoke with a start. It was instantaneous, almost at the exact same time as each other. They looked around, saw that they were still in Applejack's barn. It was dark outside, and there was a chill in the air, even moreso than during the day.

Night had fallen.

But that wasn't what was on their minds at the moment.

"Were you guys there too?" Zack asked.

"I was," Trini replied.

"Me too," Billy said.

"Same," Kimberly added.

"Yeah," Tommy answered. "That was a little too surreal." He rubbed his eyes and turned to Billy. "You know what time it is?"

Billy looked out the window. "Given the position of the moon, I'd say sometime after midnight. Looks to be about one in the morning, maybe half-past one. We've been asleep for at least twelve hours. And with the time difference between our dimensions –"

"You really think a week has passed in our world?" Trini asked.

"I think so, if this time differential is correct."

"I hope they're doing okay over there," Kimberly said. "They must still be alive. They have to be."

"I'm sure they are, Kimberly," Tommy assured her. "We'll get together with the ponies later and try to figure something out. Right now, let's just try to get back to sleep."


	16. The Secret Revealed

THE SECRET REVEALED

JASON WAS SURPRISED THAT HIS MOTHER HADN'T SEEN ANY SIGNS OF Twilight or Discord in the last few days. Those two were better at keeping a low profile than he'd expected. Then again, Twilight had enough magical power stored up to use an invisibility spell, and surprisingly enough, Discord managed to keep quiet the entire time Twilight had it activated.

It had been nearly five days since the battle with Kronos. Twilight's magic still hadn't fully replenished, so she wasn't ready to try going back to Equestria. Discord, on the other hand, didn't seem too upset at not having his powers anymore – he'd moaned about it for a little bit, until Jason gave him a good smack, finally shutting him up.

It was the weekend now, early on Saturday morning. He knew his mother was still at work, but she would be home any time. All he hoped was that this lucky streak – his mother not seeing Twilight or Discord – would last.

He opened his eyes and glanced at the clock on the nearby nightstand. It was a little bit past six in the morning. His mother would be home in about an hour. He rubbed his eyes and turned to roll back over, spotting Twilight curled up at the foot of his bed as he did.

But then it hit him – where was Discord? Wherever he was, Jason hoped the draconequus was staying out of sight.

###############################

Leann saw the light on in the kitchen as she pulled into the driveway. She figured Jason was probably awake now and looking for some breakfast. Maybe he'd have something ready for her when she got in. It wasn't unusual for Jason to have something prepared for her when she got home.

She put the car in park and shut it off; thought about what some of her coworkers had said during the night. For whatever reason, no one had seen or heard of the Power Rangers in nearly a week, which was strange. Lord Zedd was always sending some new monster out to attack, and the Power Rangers were always there to fight it off. But neither of these things had happened in the last five days. And then there was the matter of that strange town that had disappeared just as suddenly as it had appeared. Maybe that was why the Power Rangers hadn't been seen lately? They were stuck in that other place? Or maybe they had made it go away, and were now recovering? If that were the case, that still wouldn't explain why Zedd hadn't made any moves in the same amount of time.

It was drizzling slightly as she made her way from her car to the front door. It wasn't raining hard; in fact, she hardly noticed it. She put the key in the lock and opened the door.

"I'm home, Jason!" she called. "Is breakfast ready?" She hung her coat on the rack by the door and made her way to the kitchen. "I don't hear any eggs on the…stove…."

She stopped in her tracks, her voice trailing off, her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the, the…abomination in front of her. It towered over her by a good two or three feet, with a long, serpentine body. It had the head of a horse, with the antlers of a stag and an antelope on top of its skull, one fang poking out of the corner of its mouth, a tuft of hair – like a goat's beard – hanging off of its chin. The eyes were asymmetrical and misshapen, with one being larger and more rounded than the other. One arm was made up of an eagle's talons, the other a lion's paw. The creature's legs were just as strange, one leg being the leg of a lizard, the other the leg of a deer. Its tail was reptilian, covered with dark red scales and ending in a tuft of white fur. On its back were two wings – one, the wing of a bird; the other, the wing of a bat.

It was unlike any creature she had ever seen, in fiction or in reality. She was having trouble comprehending just what she was looking at. This creature, this abomination, it shouldn't have been real, and yet here it was, standing in her kitchen, cradling eggs and sausage and milk in its misshapen arms.

"Uh….Good morning," it nervously said with one of the most smug voices Leann had ever heard.

Leann's only response was to scream.

#################################

Jason threw the covers off of him when he heard his mother scream. He hurried out of his room and downstairs, Twilight galloping close behind. There was something in the house, something that had frightened her, was probably going to hurt her.

 _Not on my watch._

He slid to a stop when he reached the kitchen. His mother was armed with one of the iron skillets from the oven, and she was swinging it at Discord, who ducked out of the way.

"Hey, lady! Calm down, will ya! At least let me put in my two bits!"

"Get away, you freak!"

Jason hurried over to his mother and grabbed her arms before she could swing again. "Mom, Mom! Calm down! It's okay!"

"It's not okay, there's some weird genetic freak in our house!"

Twilight glared at Discord. "What did you do, Discord?"

"Hey, it's not like I ASKED her to walk through the door while I was looking for a snack!" Discord snapped back.

"Did – did that purple pony just talk?" Jason's mother asked.

"Discord, what did I tell you about keeping a low profile?" Jason growled.

"Jason, do you – do you know these creatures?" his mother asked.

"Mom, please, put the skillet down."

"Not until you tell me just what is going on, young man! What are these creatures? Where did they come from? And just how do you know them?"

"I…." He looked over at Twilight and Discord. "It's a bit of a long story, Mom."

"Give me the abridged version."

"The abridged version would just leave you more confused, I'm afraid," Twilight said.

His mother pointed the skillet in Twilight's direction. "I didn't ask you, pony, so stop talking to me."

"Mom, she has a name," Jason said. "Her name is Twilight Sparkle. The other one is named Discord. They're from another dimension, the one that had merged with us. They came over to find a way to break that merger and that's how I met them. They can't get home now, so I said they could stay her as long as they didn't let you see them." He turned to glare at Discord. "I can see how well THAT worked out."

"Okay, shut up," Discord hissed.

"It doesn't add up," his mother said. "The other night you said you were helping people hurt by the tremors."

"I was. That's when I met them."

"And your friends?"

Jason was quiet for a second. There was no way he could tell his mother that they were stuck in Equestria; then she would really freak out. That would also involve him telling his mother their secret, telling her that they were the Power Rangers. There was no way he was going to break that part of the Ranger Code.

"They don't know," he said. "They didn't see them." He looked over at Twilight and Discord, who just nodded – they understood why he had to lie.

"You had to think about that for a second," his mother said. "Is there something you want to share with me, Jason?"

"Not right now, Mom."

"And why not?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"What wouldn't I understand?"

 _Oh, crap, I'm just digging myself deeper_ , Jason silently hissed. "Look, Mom," he said, "I have my reasons for not telling you. I'm sorry, but right now, I just can't."

His mother set the skillet down on the counter and crossed her arms. "Jason Lee Scott, You had better tell me what you're not telling me, and you had better tell me right now. Because what you've said, about how you met these creatures, I'm finding it very difficult to believe you."

"Mom, I…." He sighed. "Mom, you see – "

His wrist communicator beeped, interrupting him. He saw Discord's and Twilight's eyes go wide with surprise.

"Uh oh," Discord whispered.

"That can't be good," Twilight whimpered.

"What are they talking about? That's just your watches alarm, isn't it?" his mother asked.

Jason clenched a fist and flared his nostrils in frustration. "Damn it, why are they calling now?" He sighed again. "Mom, you're about to find out just what I've been hiding from you for so long." He pressed a button on his wrist communicator, finally silencing the beep. "You have terrible timing."

"What do you mean?" Alpha asked; he was the one who had called.

"My mother is right here, you idiot," Jason hissed.

"Oh…crud."

"Jason, who are you talking to? Whose voice is that? Is that one of those phone watches I've heard about?"

Zordon's voice boomed through the speakers. "Jason, bring your mother to the Command Center. We will explain everything to her there."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Zordon?" Jason asked. "She's already freaked out enough as it is, having already met Discord and Twilight."

"I'm sure, Jason."

"If you say so." He turned the communicator off and turned to his mother. "Mom, you're about to learn everything."

"I still don't understand," his mother said.

"You will." He turned to Twilight and Discord. "Can you two meet us there?"

Discord scooped Twilight up off the ground. "Can do. Twilight, do your thing."

"Don't tell me what to do," Twilight said as her horn started to glow. A second later, they were gone.

"What happened?" his mother asked. "Where'd they go?"

"The same place we're going," Jason said. He took his mother's hand. "Keep your hand on me." She put her hand on his shoulder. "And don't let go." He pressed a button on his communicator, and a second later, they were in the central atrium of the Command Center. "You okay, Mom?"

"I feel a little dizzy."

"Teleportation will do that," Jason said. He watched his mother look around. "Mom, you're standing in the central base of the Power Rangers."

"You know the Power Rangers?" his mother asked. "No, wait….Oh my god." Jason just nodded. "Oh my god, you're one of them!"

"That's right," Twilight said; she and Discord had joined them. "He didn't want you to know because it's kind of one of the rules."

"Rules? What rules?"

"The Ranger Code," Zordon's deep, booming voice echoed through the room. "To never use his powers for personal gain, to never escalate a battle unless all other options had been exhausted, and to never willingly reveal his identity to anyone."

Jason's mother finally spotted Zordon's tube, saw Zordon's head looking down at her, a tiny smile spread across his face.

For the second time that morning, Leann screamed. "OH MY GOD! WHAT IS THAT THING?!"

"That's Zordon," Alpha said as he walked into the room. "And my name is Alpha-5."

"Oh my god, little robot."

"Mom, remember to breathe," Jason said as he put a hand on her shoulders. "You're going to go into shock."

"Of COURSE I'm going to go into shock!" his mother yelled. "I meet two creatures – a talking purple pony and a, a, a whatever that other thing is – this morning, I learn my own son is a Power Ranger, I get introduced to some giant ghost head in a tube, and now there's a little talking robot! Excuse me if I'm finding all of this a little hard to take in, Jason!"

"I understand that this is all very strange for you, Mrs. Scott," Zordon said. "But you must do as your son asks. You must calm down."

"I – I'm trying. I'm really trying."

"Here, let me help," Twilight said as she walked over to her. Her horn started glowing. She pressed her horn against Leann. She felt a sudden warmth go through her, a strange calmness that she couldn't explain taking over her. Her breathing returned to normal, her heart rate slowed down. "Do you feel any better?" Twilight asked.

"How did you do that?" Leann asked.

"It's a spell that Princess Celestia used to use on me when I was just a filly," Twilight explained. "She would use it whenever I started freaking out like that."

Jason caught his mother as she started to fall over. "Are you okay, Mom?"

"Yeah, just…just give me a minute." She took a few deep breaths. "I'm sorry. I'm just finding all of this really hard to take in."

"I understand, Mom," Jason said. "Come on." He walked her over to the stairs leading to the viewing globe. "Here, sit down. Take a few deep breaths."

She did as her son said, sitting down and breathing deeply. "Jason, is this real? Or am I dreaming?"

"You're not dreaming, Mrs. Scott," Alpha answered. "Your son really is the Red Ranger."

"Then who are the other Rangers?"

"Well, Mom, you see…."

His mother let out a tiny gasp. "Oh my god. I don't know why I didn't see it before! You, your friends, the way you always disappear and show up again later on; the way your attendance and grades at school have been dropping; the way you've been hiding things from me! Your friends are the other Power Rangers!" Jason simply nodded. "So, where are they now?"

"They're trapped in our world," Twilight explained. "We're not sure how to get them back yet."

"They're what?"

"Mrs. Scott, Discord and Princess Twilight Sparkle come from the magical land of Equestria," Zordon explained. "That was the dimension that had merged with this one. The reason our dimensions merged was thanks to a being known as Kronos, the God of Dimensions, who had made a pact with Lord Zedd to destroy both dimensions. For reasons I can't explain at the moment, he separated our dimensions, trapping the remaining Power Rangers in Equestria. He also stole Discord's powers and trapped him and Twilight Sparkle in this world."

"This doesn't make any sense."

"It's true, Mom," Jason said. "Me, Zack, Trini, Billy, Kimberly, and Tommy were chosen by Zordon to defend the world as the Power Rangers. Well, not Tommy, exactly – we had to break Rita Repulsa's evil spell over him first."

"And all this time I thought the reason you were so on edge was because of the pressure I was putting on you."

"You weren't putting any pressure on me, Mom," Jason assured her as he put his arms around her shoulders. "If anything, I've been putting pressure on myself, what with being the leader of the Power Rangers and all that."

"You should be very proud of your son, Mrs. Scott," Zordon said. "He has been very brave in the face of danger and has been and excellent leader to the other Power Rangers."

Leann stood up and turned to Zordon. "And let me guess, you asked them to do this, right? You do realize that you've recruited children to fight the monsters that have attacked, don't you?"

"He didn't force this on us, Mom," Jason quickly said. "He asked us to, and we all said yes."

"Why?"

"For the people we love, Mom. Do we need any other reason?"

"Mr. Big Head over there couldn't have asked soldiers or officers or someone like that to do this? He had to ask teenagers? Jason, you and your friends aren't even old enough to vote yet! You're still just kids!"

"Kids who are doing what's right, Mom," Jason retorted. "Wouldn't you have said yes?"

"No! No, I wouldn't have! Not if I knew there was the chance of me being killed!"

"We knew the risks, Mom, but we made the commitment anyway," Jason said. "I'll admit, we've gotten lucky more than once. But we're still here, Mom. We're still alive."

"Your friends are lost in some other dimension! That alone shouldn't even be real! Ignoring that, just how many times have you and your friends almost been killed? How many times have you come close to dying?"

"I don't know, Mom. Honestly, I stopped counting."

"That's my point, son!" Her voice was still raised, but it was starting to crack. Jason could see tears glistening in her eyes. She pulled him in for a tight hug. "I don't want to lose you, Jason. You're all I have left."

"You're not going to lose me, Mom," Jason said as he returned his hug. "Trust me."

"I can tell you this much, Mrs. Jason's Mom," Discord said. "You've got yourself one heck of a good kid."

His mother let him go and wiped her eyes. "I know."

"I'm sorry I never told you sooner, Mom," Jason said. "But I couldn't tell you. You understand now, don't you?"

"I think I do. To be honest, I'm still not sure if any of this is real."

"Oh, it's real alright," Twilight said. "Kronos, the Power Rangers, Equestria, everything. Speaking of which…." She turned to Alpha. "Didn't you say you would be trying to find a way to bring his friends back?"

Alpha shook his head. "No luck, I'm afraid."

"I think there's only one person who can," Jason said. "Kronos." He turned to Alpha. "Can you find his energy signature?"

"I think so," Alpha replied. "But Jason, why would you –"

"Call him. I've got a deal for him."


	17. Jason's Challenge

JASON'S CHALLENGE

"ARE YOU SURE HE'LL ANSWER YOUR CALL?" TWILIGHT ASKED.

"He'll answer," Jason replied. "He's a god. He'll hear us."

"Jason, what are you planning?" Leann asked.

"You'll see, Mom," Jason said. He didn't want to tell his mother – anyone – his plan. Not yet, anyway. He turned to Alpha. "You got him?"

"Yes, but I still don't –"

"You'll find out soon, Alpha. Just make the call." Alpha twisted a few knobs and threw a couple of switches. "Are we ready?"

"We're ready."

"Okay. Here we go."

############################

Kronos had retreated to his cosmic observatory, returning to his ever-vigilant watch over the multiverse. His little trip had been a good distraction, outside of the wounds he'd suffered – he had never expected his opponents to be _that_ powerful – but it was time to return home, especially after he thrashed Zedd like the disobedient dog he was.

He'd taken the time to rest and recover. He wasn't sure how long it had been, but he also didn't care – he had existed since the dawn of time, when the multiverse was still young; time was hardly a concept he cared for.

"Kronos! I know you can hear me!"

That voice….It belonged to the boy, Jason the Red Ranger. He had some nerve calling Kronos now, especially with that kind of tone.

"This had better be good, Red Ranger."

"Kronos, I have a proposition for you."

"Sorry, boy, but I do not make deals with beings lesser than myself."

"You made a deal with Zedd, didn't you?"

 _Okay, he's got me there,_ Kronos thought. "Fine, Jason. What's your proposition?"

"You and me, one on one," Jason said. "If I win, then you restore Discord's powers, bring my friends back, and send Twilight and Discord home."

"And what if I win?" Kronos asked.

Jason was silent for a few seconds. "If you win, then you can destroy my world. On the condition that you get every innocent man, woman, and child to safety."

Kronos rubbed his chin. He wasn't sure if he should trust the Red Ranger. He knew that humans, unlike gods and other deities, never said what they meant – they always had ways of twisting their words, saying one thing but meaning something completely different. Then again, this sounded like a fair deal; Kronos could hear genuine honesty in Jason's voice.

But how would Jason know he could trust Kronos? Kronos could weave some tale about how he would hold up his end of the bargain, and then no one in Jason's world would be left alive.

But the more he thought about it, the more he came to realize – Jason was twisting his arm, holding him in a position where no matter what happened, no matter who won the duel Jason had proposed, Kronos would be the one doing something for the Red Ranger. He had to chuckle at the irony of it all; normally, it was the gods and deities making the deals such as this. And here comes this little human boy, making such a proposition to the god of dimensions.

"I'm going to assume that this will be a battle to the death?" Kronos guessed.

"That's right," Jason replied. "You, me, one on one. One winner, one loser. Only one of us is going to walk away."

"That sounds fine by me, boy. Simply name the time and the place."

#########################

Time and place, time and place….Jason had no idea what time it was. It was at least a couple of hours after his mother learned the truth – that was around, what, eight in the morning? Maybe closer to nine? Okay, so he had a vague idea of what time it was; all he needed now was to think of a location for the fight.

But where? There were so many places to choose from, so many places he and the other Power Rangers had fought the forces of both Rita and Zedd – the rock quarry on the outskirts of town, the center of the park, the business district, the suburbs, downtown, the children's theater in the park, the fairgrounds….

"Meet me in the Angel Grove Business District at three in the afternoon, my time," Jason said after thinking for a moment. "And don't you dare back out on me." He turned to Alpha. "Close the line."

"Jason Lee Scott, have you lost your mind?" Leann yelled. "You just challenged a – a GOD – to a fight? A fight to the death? What is going through your head right now? Do you WANT him to kill you? I know I don't want that!"

"It's going to be fine, Mom," Jason said. "Trust me."

"I want to, son, I really do, but –"

Zordon cut in before she could continue. "Your son knows what he's doing, Mrs. Scott. You need to have faith in him. He has faced similar odds in the past and emerged victorious."

"Yeah, but that was when I had my friends with me," Jason said. "Honestly, I'm a little nervous about this whole thing."

"You've got us," Twilight said as she placed a hoof on his arm. "You've still got friends here who can help you. As long as you believe in the magic of friendship, you can do anything."

"The magic of friendship?" Leann repeated. "That sounds incredibly childish. It's like something a six year old would think up."

Twilight turned to glare at her. "It might sound childish to you, Mrs. Scott, but believe me, it has saved my world more times than anypony can count. I'd say about as many times as your son and his friends have saved this world. And do you know why you're still here right now? Because your son and his friends believe in the magic. They call it the power of teamwork, but it's the exact same principle."

"Twilight, please," Jason pleaded. "It's okay." He turned to his mother. "She…gets a little defensive about that."

"Let's back up a minute," Discord said. "You told that jerk to give me back my powers if he loses, right?"

"Yeah, I did."

"But wouldn't he be dead? I mean, this IS a fight to the bitter end, isn't it?"

"He'll live long enough to do what I asked him to do," Jason said. "Then I'll kill him."

"Jason, you should know I don't approve of you killing anyone," Leann said.

"Sorry, Mom, but this is one of those times where, unfortunately, what you do and don't approve of doesn't matter. You were never supposed to know about any of this; you were never supposed to be directly involved. This fight is not for anybody, Mom – it's only for myself. You understand, don't you?"

Leann shook her head. "I don't think I do. I don't think I'll ever understand."

Jason put a hand on his mother's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Mom."

"What are you sorry for? Hiding all of this from me? Didn't you say that you had to because it was one of the rules or something like that?" She pulled Jason in for a light hug. "You could die today, you know that, don't you? I don't want to lose you. You're all I have left."

"You're not going to lose me, Mom," Jason said. "I'll be okay."

"Your son's pretty strong, Mrs. Scott," Twilight said. "He fights from the heart, so I know he'll pull through."

"And besides, Mrs. Jason's Mom," Discord added, "you raised one stubborn kid."

"He doesn't get that from me," Leann said. She held Jason tighter. "I wish your father were here right now."

"Seriously?" He gently pushed his mother away. "The way he walked out on us like that back then? Give me a break, Mom." He stepped away. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to prepare for this afternoon."

"What are you going to do?" Twilight asked.

"Prepare myself mentally first. I'll worry about the physical preparations later." He walked over to the corner of the room, sat down, and closed his eyes.

"What is he doing? Meditating?" Twilight asked.

"Kind of," Leann replied. "He's trying to calm himself down – he told me so a few times before. It's better if we don't bother him right now."

Jason sat against the wall, his eyes closed as he tried to calm himself down. He didn't let anyone see, but he was even more nervous than he let on. His breathing was erratic, his heart was pounding, and he could feel beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He needed to calm himself down. He needed to be able to concentrate on the fight later.

He needed to be ready for this afternoon.

########################

He had some nerve, that boy, contacting him and challenging him like that. Did he forget that he was dealing with a god, a being who could smite him without wasting any energy whatsoever? Who was this boy to make such demands of Kronos? And yet, he knew to phrase his demands carefully, knowing full well that Kronos, given the opportunity, would have twisted them around to befit his own desires.

Still, Kronos had to admire Jason's bravery. Not even Dark Specter had the gall to directly contact him and make such demands.

 _Truly these humans are a more formidable lot than I give them credit for._

It wouldn't be long before the chosen time. Time….A concept that was beneath Kronos. He had existed since the dawn of time, since long before the event the humans referred to as the "Big Bang", the event that created the universe as they knew it – or at least, one universe out of many. Indeed, each universe had its own version of the Big Bang, an event in which a tiny star exploded, and within a millisecond, had expanded to billions upon billions its original size, creating planets, moons, asteroids, stars, every celestial being seen in the night sky. Kronos had been there to see every Big Bang, each one happening at the exact same moment, shaping every dimension in every universe across the multiverse. Older than time, older than the multiverse itself, answering only to himself, and yet, here was this little boy, boldly challenging him to a battle to the death. It was almost humbling.

Almost.

He was never one to back down from a direct challenge. He would meet Jason, he would fight him, and win or lose, he would give Jason the fight of his young life.

It would also be the last fight of his young life.

#############################

Jason had started doing push-ups some time ago. It was half past noon now, and Leann had just realized that none of them had had anything to eat for quite a while. It was a good thing that Twilight could use her magic to teleport herself anywhere she wanted to go, so Leann sent her home to get something for lunch.

That was nearly twenty minutes ago, and Twilight still hadn't come back. Discord, out of boredom, had taken to playing a card game with Alpha. Leann just watched Jason lower himself to the floor and push himself back up again.

She let out a startled yelp as Twilight warped back into the room. The lavender alicorn had several plastic bags with her – each one was filled with bowls and plates.

"Sorry I took so long," Twilight apologized. "I tried to take everyone into account, considering that I'm pretty much the only herbivore here."

"That's okay, Twilight," Leann said. She gently ran a hand through Twilight's purple and magenta mane. "Thanks for bringing this to us." She pulled a bowl of salad out of one of the bags and turned to Jason. "Jason, I think you should at least eat something."

Jason stood up and flexed his arms, loosening up his muscles. "I guess you're right, Mom." He hadn't even realized just how hungry he was; after calmly meditating for a couple of hours, he started working out, trying to physically ready himself for later. He was so busy he ignored the thundering growl of his empty somtach.

Discord let out a loud yawn. "Hey, Jason, you sure you can get me my powers back after this fight? Because not being able to do anything SUUUUUUUUUCKS."

"I sure hope so, Discord," Jason said as he took a bite of salad. "Win or lose, no one else is going to get hurt. I've made sure of that."

"What makes you think he'll keep up his end of the bargain?" Alpha asked.

"He has to. He's a god; they usually have to hold true to any deals they make, don't they?"

"Not necessarily," Zordon replied. "All gods have a way of twisting any deal around to benefit them. You may have made the deal so that Kronos would do whatever you want no matter the outcome of the fight, but no one can say for sure if he will do as you asked."

"He has to," Jason simply said. "He has to."

################################

Jason had morphed some time ago, before teleporting to the designated area. A crowd of people had gathered around; he could catch some snippets of conversations as they arose, mostly of people wondering just what the Red Ranger was doing here, standing alone in the middle of the street.

The answer came a few moments later as Kronos appeared in a beam of light, his staff in his hands.

"You've arrived, just as we agreed," Jason said.

"Did you really expect me to not show up?" Kronos asked.

"The only thing I expect you to do is keep up your end of the deal," Jason growled. "If you surrender, then you give Discord back his powers, send Discord and Twilight home, and bring my friends back to me. And if you win, you can destroy this world, but ONLY AFTER you get every innocent man, woman, and child to a safe place."

Kronos nodded. "I will honor your wishes."

"Good." He took his Blade Blaster out of its holster and flicked out the blade. "No more talk, Kronos. We end this now."

 **(WE'RE NEARING THE END, PEOPLE, JUST TWO MORE CHAPTERS TO GO!)**


	18. Thunderzord Power

THUNDERZORD POWER

THEIR WEAPONS CROSSED AS THEY ATTACKED. BLADE MET STAFF, SENDING OUT sparks as they connected. Jason dodged a swing from Kronos's staff, retaliating by slashing Kronos across the stomach with his Blade Blaster. Kronos kneed Jason in the face, knocking him flat on his back. He put his foot on Jason's chest, holding him down, and pointed the tip of his staff at him.

"You seem rejuvenated, Red Ranger," he said. "Perhaps those few days you had to rest gave you your second wind." He stepped back, allowing Jason to climb to his feet. "You know, I could have killed you right there, but I want this fight to continue for a little while longer. I want to see if you've gotten stronger."

"I'm as strong as I was the last time we fought," Jason replied. "But you're right – I do have some more energy after the battle the other day." With a flick of his wrist, his Blade Blaster turned into his Power Sword. "And that means that you won't be walking away from this one, asshole." He charged.

Kronos easily blocked Jason's attacks with his staff. He tried to counter, but Jason wouldn't let up – he kept coming at Kronos, pushing him back towards the main highway. He could see cars speeding past; maybe he'd get lucky and one of them would take Kronos out, or at least damage him enough to the point where he wouldn't be able to fight anymore.

Oh, if only. He remembered the earlier battle, how Kronos's wounds had healed, almost magically. After all, a god wasn't so easily destroyed.

Jason ducked out of the way of Kronos's staff. A quick sweep of his leg knocked Kronos off his feet. Kronos quickly rolled out of the way, just as Jason brought his sword down, the blade smacking against the concrete where Kronos had been not half a second before. He leaped to his feet.

The two of them lunged at each other. Jason blocked Kronos's attacks, retaliated with his own, neither of them willing to let up. Their weapons crossed. They pushed against each other, trying to force each other back. Jason kneed Kronos in the stomach.

Kronos stepped back and kicked Jason in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground. Jason rolled, quickly climbing to his feet, and charged at Kronos again, only to get the blunt tip of Kronos's staff in the gut, knocking the wind out of him.

"I thought you had more fight in you than that, Red Ranger," Kronos said. A slight tap of his hand sent Jason rocketing back. Jason hit the ground and rolled. He tried to stand up, but the pain in his stomach, the lack of oxygen being pulled into his lungs, prevented that.

Kronos planted his foot on Jason's chest, holding him down.

#################################

"Jason! No!"

Leann, Twilight, Discord, Alpha, and Zordon had been watching the fight unfold through the viewing globe. For a few moments, it had looked like Jason and Kronos were on even ground, but now, Kronos had gained the upper hand, and unless someone did something….

"Ai yi yi! Jason's in big trouble!" Alpha cried.

"Yeah, tell us something we can't see for ourselves," Discord snarked.

"We've got to do something," Leann said. "I have to help my son."

"And just how in Celestia's mane do you intend to do that, Mrs. Jason's Mom?" Discord asked bitterly. "You can't exactly stroll down the street to get there – it's too far away."

Leann turned to Twilight. "You! You can do that magic teleport-warp thing or whatever you call it! Do that! Take me there!"

"Mrs. Scott, it's too dangerous," Zordon warned. "You could end up getting caught in the middle of it all. You could be hurt, or worse, destroyed along with your son."

"At least I'm willing to do something!" Leann snapped. "Unlike you, Mr. Big Head! What the hell have you done? Sat in that magic tube of yours, lecturing people and having children – kids who aren't even old enough to buy a pack of cigarettes yet – fight like soldiers in your own personal army! At least I want to get out there and help out however I can, unlike you!"

"Mrs. Scott, that was uncalled for," Twilight growled. "Zordon just doesn't want you to get hurt."

"He should have thought about that before recruiting my son and his friends!"

"Mrs. Scott –" Alpha began.

"Maybe you're right, Mrs. Scott," Zordon said, interrupting Alpha. "But please understand, I did not force this upon your son and his friends. I offered them the chance to become the Power Rangers. I had never intended to take away from their personal lives, though it seems that I may have done so without realizing it. I'm sorry you feel the way you do, and I'm sorry for what I've done to these children, but they agreed to it, they agreed to put their lives on the line. They have gone far above the call of duty and have saved this planet more times than anyone can begin to count. You have every right to blame me for what I have done, but at the same time, you should also be proud of your son and his friends for all they have accomplished."

 _And all without me realizing it,_ Leann thought. She turned back to the viewing globe. "I just don't want to lose my son. Jason's all I have left." She turned to Twilight. "Please, take me to him."

Twilight sighed. "I don't know what you can do outside of cheer for him, but at least I can help him out, even a little bit. Put your hand on my back; I'll get you there."

Leann placed her hand on Twilight's back. Discord's hand joined hers.

"What do you think you're doing?" Leann growled.

"Tagging along," Discord replied. "It's boring here. Besides, I want to get my powers back. Hit it, Twily."

Twilight's horn began to glow, and a second later, they were in the middle of town, their sudden appearance scattering the crowd that had formed. Leann stepped away from Twilight and Discord, her attention fixed squarely on the fight – if it could even be called that. Kronos was holding Jason up by his neck, his hand tightly squeezing Jason's throat.

"Ja –" She was about to call out his name, but stopped herself; she couldn't let anyone here know that the Red Ranger was her son. "Red Ranger! Hang in there!"

"You can cheer him on all you wish, woman," Kronos said, "but the Red Ranger's life is slipping away. I can only imagine his final thoughts."

Leann clenched her fists. She was tempted, so tempted, to run in there and attack Kronos, but she remembered what everyone had said about him. It would be a stupid idea, to say the least. She'd probably end up dead if she did, and she probably wouldn't have a chance to lay a hand on him.

That didn't stop Twilight from firing a beam of magic at Kronos, who deflected it by simply raising his hand.

"My battle is not with you this time, my little pony," Kronos said. "But if you wish to fight, I would suggest waiting your turn." He turned his attention back to Jason, who was gasping for breath in Kronos's tight grip. "It won't be long, no."

###################################

Despite the ponies' warnings about how dangerous the Everfree Forest is, that didn't stop them from leading the Power Rangers into it. They had led the humans down one of the safer paths, avoiding the dangerous monsters that were said to reside within the woods, a path that led them to a canyon. Leading down into the canyon was a set of stairs that came to a stop near a large, pearl-white tree adorned with six jeweled symbols – symbols that resembled the ponies' Cutie Marks.

"Is that the thing you were talking about?" Kimberly asked.

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash answered. "That's the Tree of Harmony. We had to give up the Elements of Harmony a while ago when the Everfree Forest started growing out of control – it's a bit of a long story, but let's just say, it was all Discord's fault."

"To be fair," Fluttershy squeaked, "he did admit that he forgot about planting the Plunder Seeds."

"That don't mean a whole lot," Applejack said bitterly. "The Everfree could've taken the whole land over. And go figure, at least once he's made us regret givin' them trinkets up."

"Have you ever tried to get them back?" Trini asked.

"I doubt that it's possible," Rarity replied. "Then again, we've never tried it."

"Well, I think it's worth a shot," Tommy said. "It might be the only way to help our friends back in Angel Grove." He started making his way down the stairs; stopped when he noticed no one was following him. "Well? Are you guys coming or not?"

"I'm not so sure we should, Tommy," Billy said. "It's not exactly our place."

"Hey, I think Tommy's got a good idea," Rainbow Dash put in. She started flying down into the canyon. "Let's see if we can't get our Elements back."

A few moments later, the ten of them were at the base of the tree, all of them trying to pull the Elements out of the trunks. No luck.

"Well, so much for that," Rainbow Dash panted. "Anyone else got anymore bright ideas?"

"I could blast the tree with my Party Cannon," Pinkie Pie suggested.

"Yeah, shoot the tree with confetti, that's really work," Rainbow Dash snarked. "There's got to be some way we can get those things back."

"I'm not too sure," Rarity said. "If we were supposed to get them back, you'd think the Tree would have let us take them by now."

Fluttershy shrunk back. "Um….Well, maybe we're really not supposed to. I mean, we unlocked the chest." She pointed to a hexagonal-shaped chest at the base of the tree, each side adorned with a keyhole. "That's how we were able to beat Tirek. Maybe that's what we're supposed to use now?"

"Celestia said that the power would still be in us, as long as the six of us are together," Applejack answered. "But without Twilight…."

"It's useless," Fluttershy finished.

"No!" Tommy cried suddenly. "There has to be something we can do!"

"Like what?" Rarity asked bitterly. "We can't get the Elements out of the tree, we can't use the Rainbow Power without Twilight, and we can't exactly get back to your world now, can we? We've tried. There isn't anything left for us to do!"

 _ **"And that, my dear Rarity, is where you are wrong."**_

"Who the hay said that?" Applejack asked as they looked around, trying to find the source of that deep, wisdom-filled voice. "Alright, pardner – c'mon out now, y'hear!"

The ten of them were blinded by a bright, yellow light, coming from above the petrified tree. They turned away, shielding their eyes, barely able to see the equine figure slowly appearing in the light. As their eyes adjusted to the light, they could make out more and more of the figure – a unicorn stallion, tall and proud, his fur dark navy blue – similar to Princess Luna – complete with a white mane and tail. A long, neatly trimmed beard hung off of his chin. His robes, which were a light shade of blue than his robe, were decorated with star patterns. The tiny bells on the hems of his robe and his tall pointed hat jingled slightly as he walked out of the light. His eyes shone with a sort of wisdom they had only seen on Princess Celestia and Zordon.

"Who are you?" Kimberly asked. "You don't look like any pony we've met."

"That's saying something, considering we only know a few," Zack whispered to her.

"Wait, you look familiar," Rarity said. "I know I've seen you somewhere before." She let out a tiny gasp as realization hit her. "That's right! Twilight's Nightmare Night costume! She said she had dressed up as…Starswirl the Bearded!"

"You must be joking," Rainbow Dash whispered hoarsely.

"Who?" Trini asked.

The unicorn – Starswirl the Bearded – nodded and smiled. "Yes. That is my name. And I assume that you are all wondering exactly why I am here, or why I am coming to you now."

"Yeah, those sound like questions we'd like to have answered," Applejack said as she stepped forward. "Along with one other – how come y'all are decidin' to show up NOW, after all this time? Ya mind explainin' THAT one, Mr. Greatest Unicorn Magician Who Ever Lived?"

"Applejack, show some respect," Rarity scolded her.

"No, no, it is quite alright, my dear child," Starswirl said. "To answer your question, Honest Applejack, there had never been a need for me to aid you in the past. You and your friends – the true Elements of Harmony – have been more than capable of handling whatever came your way. Every threat to Equestria, you have defeated. You have stood by each other through the good times as well as the bad. This is the only time I have felt the need to step in, for I believe that you cannot handle this particular threat alone."

"Well, you're kind of right about that one," Tommy said.

"But answer me this," Rarity put in. "Nopony knows why you suddenly vanished. Some say time caught up to you and you passed on. Others say you were lost in another dimension. What's the true story?"

"I am indeed no longer a member of the living world," Starswirl answered. "I do have enough magical powers, however, to cross over from the land of the dead to the land of the living whenever I desire."

"Like now?" Trini asked.

Starswirl nodded his head again. "Yes, my dear. Like now." He began to address everyone. "It is true that Equestria, through no fault of its own, has violated the laws that Kronos has established. But I do agree that we do not deserve the punishment he has tried to deliver us. A punishment that will befall the world of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers should the Red Ranger fall in battle."

"What? Jason's fighting him all by himself?" Zack gasped. "Guys, we have to get back there."

"And just how in tarnation are y'all plannin' on doin' that?" Applejack asked. "It's not like we can just make another dimensional rift or –"

"None of you have that sort of power," Starswirl interrupted. "However, I do. I can join your worlds once more, but only Kronos will be able to separate them." He turned to the Tree. "And these Elements of Harmony….You will be allowed to use them, but only one more time. Once you have used them, they must be returned to the Tree of Harmony. I will remove the Elements from the Tree, but you must return them once the battle is over."

"You can do that?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I thought the Elements were stuck there for good."

Starswirl chuckled. "True. But with my magic…." His horn began to glow a bright, pearly white. "The Elements shall be free once more, but only once more." The six jewels broke free of the Tree and floated down to the ponies. As the jewels got closer, they formed five necklaces – one for Rainbow Dash, one for Applejack, one for Rarity, one for Pinkie Pie, and one for Fluttershy – as well as a crown, each one emblazoned with an image of their Cutie Marks.

Starswirl floated the crown over to Kimberly. "Take it. Take it and deliver it to Princess Twilight Sparkle." Kimberly reached out and took the crown. "Now, I shall re-open the rift."

They nearly fell off their feet as the ground shook beneath them. It was exactly what they felt the first time their worlds merged.

"It is done," Starswirl announced. "Your worlds are merged once more. And so it shall be, until the battle is won." He lightly bowed his head. "My little ponies, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – my children – I wish you luck in the battle. I believe that you shall win." He stepped backward into the light. "Farewell, my young friends. I hope that one day, we will meet again during your lifetimes. Oh, and give the princess my regards."

The light faded away, taking Starswirl with it.

"Okay, did that really happen?" Kimberly asked.

"I think it did," Rainbow Dash answered. "Go figure, just when we're about to call it quits."

"Hey, don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Pinkie Pie said. "Let's go."

"I'm with Pinkie Pie," Zack put in. "I'm done sitting on the sidelines. My best pal needs our help. So let's get back over there, track down Kronos, and give him an ass kicking he'll never forget!"

##################################

Twilight felt so helpless. She wanted to help Jason, but at the same time, she knew there wouldn't be much she could have done. If Kronos could easily defend against her attacks, what could she do? Charge him? The only thing that would succeed in doing would be getting her neck snapped, and possibly result in Kronos killing Jason even faster.

Leann, obviously, couldn't do much. Twilight felt so sorry for her; she was forced to watch her son get horribly beaten, and the only thing she could do was try to cheer him on.

 _There must be something, SOMETHING I can do!_ Twilight silently hissed. _But what?_

She stumbled, nearly falling off of her hooves, as a tremor hit. "Whoa! Earthquake?" She looked up. "No way…."

The shimmering image of Ponyville had returned. Twilight could just barely make out a figure moving towards this end of the rift, a blue, flying figure –

—Which was revealed to be Rainbow Dash, flying at top speed. She slammed into Kronos, knocking him off of Jason – he'd had his foot planted on Jason's chest, and was about to bring the pointed tip of his staff down on Jason's face.

Kronos hit the ground, hard. He rolled a few meters, stopping only after hitting his back on a fire hydrant. He winced as the pain raked up and down his body. Slowly, his eyes opened, allowing him to finally see Rainbow Dash.

"WHAT?! IMPOSSIBLE! THE RIFT IS CLOSED!"

"The rift WAS closed, bub," Rainbow Dash hissed. "Past tense, dude."

Twilight galloped over to Rainbow Dash. "What – But – I mean – How – Why – What –?"

"You're at a loss for words, eh, Twi?"

Pinkie Pie's whistle filled the air. Twilight looked over to the rift, just in time to see the rest of her friends galloping across, coming from Equestria to Angel Grove. And only now did she notice the necklaces hanging off of them.

"You've got the Elements of Harmony back?" Twilight asked as the rest of her friends joined her. "But – but how?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," Rainbow Dash said. "Starswirl the Bearded says hi."

Twilight's eyes went wide. "You must be joking. Starswirl?"

"Hey, y'all? I think Jason might need a little help over here," Applejack said. They all galloped over to him. "Looks like he's taken one heck of a whoopin'." They could hear him trying to breathe through his helmet; saw the blotches of blood on his outfit and through his dark visor. "Hang in there, pal."

"I've got it," Twilight said as her horn started to glow. She pressed her horn against Jason's body. Slowly, he started breathing again; his blood dried up and disappeared. "Jason? Are you okay?"

Jason sat up on his elbows. "Ouch. God, that hurts." He slowly stood up. "How did you guys get here?"

"Good question," Twilight agreed. "Answers. Now."

"Starswirl the Bearded opened the rift up and gave us the Elements of Harmony back," Pinkie Pie quickly explained. "Said we have to put them back after we win, though."

"Red Ranger!" Leann called. "You! Over here! Now!"

"Who's that lady?" Fluttershy asked.

"Jason's mom," Twilight answered. They followed Jason as he headed over to his mother. "She's a sweet lady. I think you'll like her."

"Jason, why are there more talking horses here?" Leann asked when they got closer.

"Mom, look over there." Jason pointed to the rift. "The rift is open again. I'm guessing they took advantage of it and came over to help." He turned to the ponies. "But where are the other Power Rangers?"

"They're coming," Rarity answered. "And they're brining Twilight's Element, too."

Just then, Jason heard a familiar battle cry:

"IT'S MORPHING TIME!"

Five figures came running across the rift – yellow, blue, pink, black, and white – all armed with weapons – daggers, a lance, a bow and arrow, an ax, a short sword. The Pink Ranger was also carrying a golden crown in her hand. As they got closer, she threw the crown towards Twilight, who caught it with her magic and placed it on her head.

The Rangers all hit Kronos as he climbed to his feet, catching him off guard. Trini, Billy, Tommy, and Zack slashed at him with their weapons, while Kimberly shot him with her bow and arrow, the arrow sticking in his shoulder. Another hit knocked him flat.

With Kronos down – at least for a moment – they all huddled around Jason, who pulled them in for a group hug.

"You're back! I thought I'd lost you guys forever."

"You almost did, if not for the pony version of Merlin helping us out," Kimberly said.

"Just one question, Jason," Trini whispered. "Why's your mom here?"

"She found out," Jason answered. "Alpha called at a bad time. It was an accident, I assure you."

"We can worry about that later," Zack said. He turned to Discord. "Yo! Discord!" He held up the bottle he'd pulled off of Kronos while Kronos wasn't looking. "Got something for ya!" He threw the bottle to Discord.

"What? But how?" Kronos demanded as he climbed to his feet.

"The hand is quicker than the eye," Zack replied snidely.

Discord popped the top off the bottle and poured the contents down his throat. "Oh yeah, that feels so much better." He dropped the bottle into his mouth, chewed once, and swallowed. "Now, payback time." He snapped his fingers.

The ground around Kronos began to bubble and melt, pulling him down. "Kronos, you may be a god," Discord said as Kronos struggled to get free of the ground, which was hardening, holding him down. "You may have more powerful…powers…than me. But let me tell you something right now, bub – a god who controls all dimensions is nothing compared to the one who commands chaos itself!" He waved a hand.

A column of lava shot out of the ground, engulfing Kronos. Kronos landed, hard, on the roof of a nearby cargo van, writing in pain as he tried to put out the fires consuming his body.

"You control the multiverse," Discord continued as he hovered over Kronos's still-burning body; the flames were starting to die down as Kronos's body slowly healed itself. "But that is child's play compared to the power to control ALL OF REALITY ITSELF!" He clapped his hands. The cargo van closed over Kronos like it were a bear trap, compressing his body, the pressure slowly building, crushing his bones. "I am the master of chaos and disharmony! I am the draconequus once known as 'The Scourge of Equestria'! I am Discord. Remember the name, bitch." He held out his hand; a dark orb of energy shot out from his palm and hit the van, destroying it. "It's good to be back."

Kronos stepped out of the smoke; his body was charred, but slowly healing, his skin tone returning to normal. His face was contorted in rage.

"You…hurt…me…AGAIN!"

"Oh, boo-bucking-hoo," Discord mocked him. "We all got problems."

"You will have problems, most definitely," Kronos said. He held up his hand. Lightning shot down from the sky into his palm, forming what looked like a large silver orb, with a smaller orb on top. "Zedd normally has to give these to his minions, but I am not one of his minions. Now, do you want problems? Very well, then." He pulled the smaller orb off of the larger one. "You will have problems, all right."

"Oh shit," Jason breathed. "EVERYONE GET BACK!"

Kronos casually dropped the larger orb on the ground. Fire erupted around him as his body grew – higher, higher, higher, until he towered over them, tall as a skyscraper, each foot now as wide as two highway traffic lanes.

"WHAT THE BUCK!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "HOW THE BUCK DID HE DO THAT!"

"Who cares?" Applejack asked back. "All I wanna know is – how the hay are we supposed to fight him now?"

Jason turned to his mother. "Mom, I want you to get as many people to safety as you can. The less innocents caught in the crossfire, the better."

"Hey, I'm with the orange horse," Leann said. "How the hell are you going to fight him when he's as tall as Godzilla?"

"We'll call the Zords," Tommy answered. "Now that we actually have a reason to."

"Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, I want you to help Mrs. Scott get the innocent people out of harm's way," Twilight quickly ordered. "Discord, you're with me. We'll distract him while the Rangers call their Zords."

"Sounds like fun," Discord cheered.

"Can do, Twilight," Rarity said. "Let's go, everypony."

Twilight and Discord shot up towards Kronos, Twilight firing her magic, Discord launching his dark energy orbs.

Not that any of that mattered to Kronos, not at his size. To him, Twilight and Discord were no more than annoying insects that needed to be swatted – if only he could. He continually missed them, his hands and staff slamming against the nearby buildings, knocking large chunks off and sending them falling to the ground, where the innocent people hurried to avoid getting hit.

"Little fools, you cannot hope to defeat me," he bellowed. "I AM KRONOS! I AM A GOD! And you will all die this day."

 _As I survey the chaos, taking in the lack of raw humanity_

 _It's as if the entire world's fallen in love with their insanity_

 _Hear the innocent voices scream_

 _As their tormentors laugh through all of it_

 _No forgiveness for all I've seen_

 _A degradation I cannot forget_

 _So sleep soundly in your beds tonight_

 _For judgement falls upon you at first light_

 _I'm the hand of God_

 _I'm the dark messiah_

 _I'm the vengeful one_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _In the blackest moments of your dying worlds_

 _What have you become_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _As the violence surges_

 _And the teeming masses have been terrorized_

 _Their human predators... all gone mad_

 _Are reaping profits born from their demise_

 _The rabid media plays their role_

 _Stoking the flames of war to no surprise_

 _Only too eager to sell their souls_

 _For the apocalypse must be televised_

 _So sleep soundly in your beds tonight_

 _For judgement falls upon you at first light_

 _I'm the hand of God_

 _I'm the dark messiah_

 _I'm the vengeful one_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _In the blackest moments of your dying worlds_

 _What have you become_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _When you die_

 _You'll know why_

 _For you cannot be saved_

 _With all the world enslaved_

 _When you die_

 _You'll know why_

 _When you die_

 _You'll know why_

 _For you could not be saved_

 _This world is too depraved_

 _When you die_

 _You'll know why_

 _I'm the hand of God_

 _I'm the dark messiah_

 _I'm the vengeful one_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _In the blackest moments of your dying worlds_

 _What have you become_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _Look inside and see what you're becoming_

 _##################################_

"WE NEED THUNDERZORD POWER, NOW!"

"I NEED WHITE TIGER THUNDERZORD POWER, NOW!"

Almost as if by magic, their massive assault vehicles – the Zords – appeared from their hiding places in and around the city. The White Tiger raced through the rocky desert, followed by the Lion, Firebird, Unicorn, Griffin, and Red Dragon Thunderzords. The Rangers teleported into the cockpits of their respective Zords – Tommy's White Tiger, Zack's Lion, Kimberly's Firebird, Billy's Unicorn, Trini's Griffon, and Jason's Red Dragon.

The Red Dragon began to transform, changing from a serpentine dragon form into a humanoid warrior form, armed with a long staff. At the same time, the White Tiger also began to change into a similar shape, only it was armed with a curved sword that resembled Saba.

The other Thunderzords began to change, but instead of transforming into humanoid forms, they began to shape themselves into the components of the Thunder Megazord – the Unicorn and Griffon formed the legs and feet, which the legs and feet of the Red Dragon easily slipped into , as though they were a pair of well-fitting boots; the Firebird formed the belt, which set perfectly around the waist; the Lion formed the chest armor – adorned with a green orb that was the main cockpit for the Megazord – as well as the arms, shoulder pads, and helmet for the Megazord, which fit over the Red Dragon's chest, arms, and head perfectly.

Kronos looked upon the two Zords with bewilderment and amazement. "Well. Those machines are certainly impressive. I am beginning to understand how you managed to thwart Zedd for so long, with weapons such as those at your disposal. But tell me, do you really think they will be enough to stand up against me?"

Twilight and Discord landed on the shoulders of the Thunder Megazord. "Just you watch!" Twilight called over to Kronos. "They'll win! The Power Rangers always win! Because they have something you don't have, something you have never had! They've got the power of teamwork and the magic of friendship on their side!"

Kronos scowled. He swung his staff, which was blocked by the White Tigerzord's sword. The Tigerzord pushed Kronos back, allowing the Thunder Megazord to hit him in the face with a hard punch, followed up by Twilight blasting him in the eye with her magic.

"GAH!"

The Thunder Megazord grabbed Kronos and threw him to the ground. Before he could get up, the Tigerzord planted its foot on his chest, holding him down, allowing Twilight to continually blast him.

Kronos threw the Tigerzord off of him and climbed to his feet, his staff ready. They all stared at each other, waiting for someone to make the next move.

##############################

They'd retreated to a large pavilion in the middle of the park. There were at least a hundred men, women, and children here, all of them understandably frightened, though not as frightened as Fluttershy would have thought – then again, these people had had experience with this sort of situation, so they were probably used to it.

Still, Fluttershy could understand the fear they were all feeling. No one was sure if the Power Rangers would win against that giant monstrosity that Kronos had become.

She was trying to comfort a small child, a little girl who was crying along with her mother.

"It's okay," Fluttershy said softly. "Everything's going to be just fine."

Rainbow Dash was standing on the roof of the pavilion, fluttering her wings and tapping her hoof impatiently. She had her attention fixated on the battle – they could see the Zords and Kronos from overtop the buildings and the trees, and it looked like it had reached a stalemate, with neither side willing to give up. Every now and then there was a flash of purple and black as Twilight and Discord hit him with their magic and chaos powers.

 _I shouldn't be here,_ Rainbow Dash thought. _I shouldn't be here while my friends are fighting that jerk._

She flared her wings. "That's it. I'm going in there." She took off, flying at her top speed.

"Rainbow Dash, get back here!" Applejack called after her. "Nuts and shoes. She's gonna get herself killed."

"Looks like we'd better go after her," Rarity suggested. "Come on, everyone. Besides, Twilight's going to need us all to use the Elements of Harmony."

"Wait a moment, where are you all going?" Jason's mother asked. "You're not going over…there…are you?"

"We kind of have to," Applejack answered. "If we want to help our friends."

"Well – what do you want me to do?"

"Stay here and keep everyone safe," Rarity said. "Let's go, everypony."

Twilight had collapsed onto the roof of a nearby building, breathing heavily. Her attacks had done nothing but annoy Kronos – she hadn't even broken his skin. How could that be possible? She'd gone hoof to hoof with Tirek – fought him to a standstill – and was able to make him bleed, so why couldn't she do the same with Kronos? Maybe it had something to do with how large he was now, or maybe because he was a god.

Either way, she needed to take a break. She needed to catch her breath. She watched as Kronos hit the Thunder Megazord with his staff, sending a shower of sparks flying off of the giant robot. The Tigerzord stepped up to take the Megazord's place, swinging its sword, which was blocked by Kronos.

Discord joined her; he, too, was breathing heavily.

"This guy….He's really starting to tick me off," Discord panted.

"I know what you mean," Twilight said as she climbed to her hooves. "I knew this wouldn't be an easy battle but….Celestia's mane."

"Twilight! Discord!"

Rainbow Dash landed on the roof next to them.

"What are you doing here?" Twilight asked.

"I came to help you guys," Rainbow Dash replied. "How's things going?"

"Terrible," Discord answered. "We're getting our tails kicked."

One by one, the other ponies arrived – they'd climbed up the fire escape, except for Fluttershy, who had flown to the roof. They took a moment to catch their breath as they watched the two Zords continue to fight Kronos.

"So, anyone got any bright ideas?" Applejack asked.

"Party cannon?" Pinkie Pie suggested.

"No party cannon," Rainbow Dash said. "Confetti and pies won't work. What about the Elements of Harmony?"

"We don't have a clear shot yet," Twilight answered. "The Megazords are too close to – WAIT! I've got an idea! All we have to do is get closer, and then we can hit him."

"Excuse me, Twilight, but that sounds a bit dangerous," Fluttershy squeaked.

"Maybe," Twilight said. "But we can do it. Hang on." She used her magic to levitate the six of them over to the shoulders of the Thunder Megazord. "All right, ponies – let's finish this!"

Her crown began to glow with a bright light. The light spread from her crown to the five necklaces, lifting them up into the air as it came full circle. Twilight's eyes shone with the same bright light, and before Kronos could react, a rainbow shot out of the crown, arching over his head and slamming into him, racking his body with a kind of pain he had never felt before.

"Rangers! Finish it! Do it now!" Twilight hollered.

The Thunder Megazord pulled out its sword. The two Zord slashed at Kronos, the blades digging into his body as the rainbow faded away. Blood poured from Kronos's wounds. He tried to stay on his feet, using his staff for support, but the pain won out, and he collapsed.

As soon as his body hit the ground, he exploded in a massive fireball.

"Did we do it?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"It's not over yet," Rainbow Dash said. She pointed to the ground with her hoof. "Look."

They looked to the ground. There, down below, was Kronos, back to normal size, laying on the ground in a pool of his own blood.

###############################

Kronos had felt pain before, but never like this. It took every ounce of energy he had left to try to heal his wounds. He winced and gritted his teeth in pain as he felt his body fail to respond. It was as though his very life were slipping away.

He finally found the strength to at least get up on his knees, out of the pool of his own blood. His wounds slowly closed up, but the pain failed to subside.

He heard the sound of someone approaching. He looked up; saw the Power Rangers, Discord, and those ponies all standing around him, their weapons ready, their hooves scraping the ground, Discord's hands covered in the dark energy orbs.

Kronos winced once more. "I – I –" He struggled to find the right word, a word he had never had to utter before. "I yield. I concede. The battle is yours. I have lost. If you see fit to take my life as payment for the misery I have caused you all, then please – do so. Think of it as an apology for my rash actions."

The Red Ranger stepped forward. "We're not going to kill you, Kronos," he said. "After all, you've still got a job to do, don't you? You have to keep an eye on the multiverse. And besides, we had an agreement. My friends might be back with me, and Discord may have his powers back, but you still need to close that rift once the Equestrians go home."

Kronos nodded in agreement. "I will keep my word. I only ask for one thing – time to heal my wounds."

 **(*NEXT UP – THE FINAL CHAPTER OF THE CROSSOVER SAGA!*)**


	19. Let the Rainbow Remind You

LET THE RAINBOW REMIND YOU

LEANN HAD HURRIED TO THE SITE OF THE BATTLE AFTER SHE HEARD THE explosion. She had been fearing the worst – the Power Rangers had lost. As she ran, she prayed that she was wrong, prayed that they were still alive and that their enemy had been defeated.

She climbed over some rubble, saw the Power Rangers, Discord, and their pony friends surrounding Kronos, who looked like he'd taken one terrible beating. The Rangers had their weapons aimed at Kronos.

She hurried over to them. "Are you guys okay?"

"Mom, what are you doing here?" Jason asked. "Never mind." He returned his attention to Kronos. "You'd better keep your promise, Kronos."

Kronos slowly climbed to his feet. "I will."

"You'd better."

"So….Does this mean we win?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"It does," Kronos answered. "You've proven yourselves to be far more powerful than I could have ever imagined. Your courage, your tenacity, your strength – I've never seen anything like it before."

"And if you play your cards right, you probably never will again," Zack said. "Just as long as you don't go around trying to destroy any more dimensions."

"I assure you, I will not." His wounds finally finished healing up. "I will close the rift, once the little ponies return home."

"We'll go back to Equestria soon," Twilight said. "Once we've recovered ourselves."

"And maybe help the Power Rangers clean up this mess," Rarity said, indicating the rubble strewn all over the street.

"Angel Grove's got a pretty good cleanup crew, ever since Rita started attacking," Trini explained. "But we help them out when we can."

"Then I, too, shall lend my assistance," Kronos offered.

#################################

Three days past. The city had come together to clean up the damage caused by the battle – local citizens, the Boy Scouts, volunteer and full-time firefighters, police, the Power Rangers, the ponies, Discord, Kronos….It hadn't taken as long as everyone had first thought.

Within three days, it looked as though a battle had never even been fought.

"Gotta give it to y'all, ya sure know how to clean up 'round these parts," Applejack complimented the Power Rangers as they stood at the rift.

"Like Trini said, we've gotten good at it," Jason replied. "Anyway, the longer this rift stays open, the more our worlds are in danger. As much as I hate to say it, I think it's time you all went home now."

"Jason's right," Twilight agreed. "We did what we set out to do." She turned to the Power Rangers. "This isn't the first time we've had to say goodbye to friends. It never gets any easier."

"I'm sure it doesn't, Twilight Sparkle," Jason said. He held out a hand. Twilight put her hoof in it. "Thanks for everything."

"Glad to help."

They fist and hoof bumped, shook hands and hooves, as they all said their goodbyes. Even Leann, who gladly shook Discord's eagle-talon hand.

"I don't think I'll ever look at these kids the same way again," she said. "Not after everything that's happened. Hell, I don't think I'll ever look at the whole world the same way again. After all, I just learned the identities of the Power Rangers, and I've learned that there are alternate dimensions and different realities out there. Small world, huh?"

"Small multiverse, you mean," Discord playfully corrected her.

Kronos cleared his throat, catching everyone's attention. "Yes, well, I am very happy that you have all recovered, and that you have succeeded in your quest. But I suggest you all return to Equestria now, so that I may close the rift for good – truthfully, I do not wish to see your worlds destroyed."

"Kronos is right, everypony," Twilight said. She turned back to the Power Rangers. "Well, Power Rangers, I guess this is goodbye. Who knows if we'll ever meet again."

"Somehow, I doubt it," Jason said softly. He looked over to Kronos. "Don't want that guy getting mad at us again."

Twilight chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you're right." She turned to everypony else. "Well, let's go."

The Power Rangers watched as Discord and the six ponies crossed the rift one last time. Once they were across, Kronos snapped his fingers. The rift began to shrink, until it closed completely.

"My work is done," Kronos announced. "As promised, I leave you all in peace." He vanished in a beam of light.

"Well," Leann said after a moment of silence. "This has been one crazy adventure, hasn't it?"

Jason put his arm around his mother's shoulders. He pulled the rest of the Power Rangers in with them, and – as a shock to everyone – began to sing a rather upbeat song.

 _JASON: Each one of us has something special_

 _That makes us different, that makes us rare_

 _We have a light that shines within us_

 _That we were always meant to share_

 _LEANN: And when we come together_

 _Combine the light that shines within_

 _There is nothing we can't do_

 _There is no battle we can't win_

 _JASON AND LEANN: When we come together_

 _There'll be a star to guide the way_

 _It's inside us every day_

 _See it now! See it now!_

 _Let the rainbow remind you_

 _That together we will always shine_

 _Let the rainbow remind you_

 _That forever this will be our time_

 _TRINI: Each one of us will sometimes falter_

 _We may stumble, we may fall_

 _BILLY: But we still have a kind of power_

 _One that will see us through it all_

 _KIMBERLY: And when we come together_

 _Combine the light that shines within_

 _ZACK: There is nothing we can't do_

 _There is no battle we can't win_

 _TOMMY: When we come together_

 _There'll be a star to guide the way_

 _It's inside us every day_

 _See it now! See it now!_

 _LEANN AND THE POWER RANGERS: Let the rainbow remind you_

 _That together we will always shine_

 _Let the rainbow remind you_

 _That forever this will be our time_

 _JASON: Let the rainbow remind you_

 _That together we will always shine_

"We all won this battle, together," Jason said. "Thanks to the power of teamwork. And the magic of friendship."

They all looked at the spot where the rift had been just a few moments ago. "May the power protect you, little ponies," they all said together.

 **THE END**


End file.
